Concert Angel
by Talks too much
Summary: In the midst of being abused by her famous father, Miley finds comfort in an unknown, rising musician- Nick Lucas. Will he be able to save her or just end up breaking her down? Niley.
1. Use Somebody

Miley rubbed her arm as the purple mark started to slowly ooze across her smooth skin. She winced in pain as her fingers slightly trailed across the center of the bruise. She wondered if Demi was okay. There was a loud thump that was heard from across the hall. That answers her question. She could hear a door slam and footsteps making their way nearer to her door. Please don't come here again. The shivering girl silently prayed and a sigh of relief was passed as she heard the footsteps on the stairs. The hardwood floor creaked as Miley tiptoed across her room, trying to avoid any further damage from her supposed father figure. She placed her hand on the doorknob and listened carefully to world outside her bedroom. He had to be downstairs. She creaked open the door and made a run for Demi's bedroom. She was safe as soon as she closed and locked the door.

"Hey," Demi meekly replied to her sister's arrival. Demi was currently rolled up in a ball at the corner of the room. Her pants were rolled up to her knees, displaying the fact that she was surveying the bruises that dotted her legs.

"Why does he do this to us?" Miley whimpered. She was so weak from the constant abuse that she had been suffering for the past couple of years.  
"He's fucking Billy Ray Stewart. He can do whatever the hell he wants," Demi accidentally sneered. She hadn't meant to sound so bitter towards Miley. She knew her sister was going through the same torture.

"I guess three number one albums gives you the right to..." Miley trailed. She couldn't say it. If she said it then everything would become too real for her. She could see Demi was in her own world as her sister's eyes danced around the room. She felt the same things her sister was feeling- this room was a trap. This house was a trap.  
"Fuck this shit. Let's get out of here," Demi got up and tugged on Miley's arm, ignoring Miley's decently sized bruise.

"Where are we going?" Miley asked as she picked herself up.

"Anywhere and everywhere. Maybe heaven. Who knows- maybe we'll even meet our guardian angels." Miley smiled at the thought. Someone to save her- that would be a nice thing. She got up and dusted herself as Demi quietly propped the bedroom window open. Each squeak the window emitted had the girls' ears perked up. If Billy Ray heard any noise, he would make the punishment much worse then the daily dose the girls were already experiencing. Once the window was fully open, Miley made her way out first as she slid onto the roof and held her hand for Demi to follow. Demi almost stumbled as her feet landed, but luckily her sister was watching. The two grabbed the edge of the roof and dangled down the house preparing to make a leap to their freedom. Once they landed, Miley crawled towards the nearest bush to make a surveillance of any paparazzi. The cost was clear and the girls ran to the car that was parked at the side of the street. Demi flipped out her keys to unlock her car.

"I'm glad you park outside," Miley chuckled as she tugged the door open.

"This is why I park it out here," Demi giggled. Miley was glad to hear her sister's laughter. It had been a long time since the both of them were really truly happy. "We really need this," Demi added as an after thought. Miley nodded as she turned up the volume of the stereo. Her forehead creased as she was trying to figure out the song that was currently playing the radio. "Use Somebody," Demi offered.

"I really could 'Use Somebody'," Miley murmured, looking out the clear window. She watched the tall Los Angeles palms run past her as Demi's car sped through the streets of the city. Pure silence wafted into the car. The two teens sat in a comfortable silence. Each of them were thinking about their current situations and just enjoying the peace of the moment.

"Where do you want to go?" Demi asked. She looked over to her sister's blue eyes. They were empty without a suggestion. Didn't seem like Miley had a preference. "How about the bar down the corner," Demi nodded at a small place that situated itself at the corner of the street. Miley silently nodded and Demi proceeded to pull her car over. The breaks were pressed and the two girls started to get out of the car.

"An old fashioned bar," Miley sighed as she took in the architecture. It was a small, old pub that was in the midst of the modern Los Angeles. It was nice to have an escape every once in awhile- one that was far away from the greasy men who hogged up Miley's childhood with their cameras.

"Yup," Demi swung her purse over her shoulders and squeaked the door open. Their boots clanked as they hit the hardwood floors of the bar. There was a band playing on the small stage at the far end of the room. Miley looked up when she heard the music to see four people on stage- all absorbed in the music they were making. She narrowed in her eyes on the guitar player. He was so into the music that he seemed to have forgotten he was in front of many people. He was nicely dressed for a guy in his twenties, Miley observed. For some reason, she couldn't seem to take her eyes away from him as she followed Demi to the bar. "Two simple beers," Demi told the bartender. "What are you looking at?" she focused her attention onto her sister, who was currently entranced with the lead singer of the bar's band. "Or who?" Demi nudged, bringing Miley out of her own little world.

"Stop," Miley blushed furiously. She looked up at the bartender who was not so sneakily listening in on their conversation. "What?" Miley asked, expecting him to be a future insider of a tabloid that would report Demi and Miley's wild night out.

"He's my brother," the man grinned proudly as he nodded towards the stage.

"Oh?" Miley asked out of surprise. The two did not look that much alike. She squinted to get a better view of the guy on stage. "I can't really see the resemblance," she admitted.

"Me too," Demi titled her head to observe the two more closely. "I think he's the better looking one," Demi joked. She took a sip of her beer when the bartender was finished preparing her drink.

"Thanks," the man replied sarcastically. "I'm Joe by the way," he held out his hand to greet the girls. Demi nodded back, completely ignoring his politeness.

"Ignore her," Miley said as she shook his hand. "She's a wee bit pissed right now. Not exactly in a good mood." She tucked her hair behind her ears and started to consume her beer. She never really like the taste, but she really didn't care what she was drinking.

"Joe!" a man yelled at the end of the counter. He looked like a regular customer. "I need another drink," he chuckled, looking up at the television. Joe nodded and excused himself from the company of Demi and Miley.

"It didn't seem like he knew who we were," Demi whispered when Joe walked away. She gulped down her last drops as she turned towards Miley.

"Yeah...maybe not by face?" Miley questioned. He had to know who they were. Everyone in Los Angeles was practically familiar with the duo. Demi shrugged and silenced herself as Joe intruded their conversation again.

"You need another drink?" Joe asked. Miley nodded and waited as he poured her some more beer. The music stopped slowly and Joe's face lighted up in a grin. Miley turned around to see his brother making his way over to the bar. His guitar was slung over his shoulder as he cleared his way onto a bar stool

"One whatever is good right now," he slammed his hands on the table and laid his head on the table. He looked exhausted. Miley had to stifle a laugh from his appearance. He looked like a little kid that just got down with playing in a playground. He tipped his hat as he noticed Miley staring at him.

"Hey," Miley was surprised by the urge of confidence that was rushing through her. "You guys are good," she made a hand motion towards the stage.

"Thanks," the mystery man grinned, glowing with pride. "I'm Nick. His brother," he looked at Joe, who was entertaining himself with finding a beer mug for Nick.

"I know," Miley giggled. "Your brother already said so. I'm Miley. Miley Stewart." Nick stuck out his hand and she shook her head slightly. "I don't do handshakes. I do hugs," she chuckled. Nick grinned back and stood up to properly give her a hug.

"Well, you two lovers finish off your conversation. I'm going to be in the car," Demi grinned, knowing fully well that she just embarrassed Miley. She slipped out of her stool, leaving Miley blushing furiously.

"Ignore her. She's a wee bit pissed right now. Not exactly in a good mood," Joe mimicked Miley's earlier statement. Miley giggled at his impression of her. "Well, at least she can spot when my brother flirts with people. Trust me, its kind of hard. He doesn't know how to flirt," Joe winked at Nick and left the couple alone.

"Um," Nick rubbed the back of his neck, blushing from their awkward situation. He looked at the windows and looked back into his company's sparkling, blue eyes. "I was trying to flirt by the way..." he trailed, hoping he hadn't made a fool out of himself. Miley waited for a minute before responding. She wanted to make him suffer in silence just for the fun of it. He looked up at her, waiting for a response. She threw her head back and laughed at his adorable actions.

"I was flirting too," Miley admitted. She looked around nervously. This was such a sweet, awkward moment.

"Well, if that's the case. I would like to take you out," Nick blatantly stated. He didn't know where this was all coming from. Usually, he was a nervous wreck around girls, never knowing the right things to say.

"I'd like that," Miley nodded as Nick pulled out his cellphone to get her number. Maybe she had found her savior.

**A/N So this is the new story. The updates will probably be about this length. Its a little but longer than the aver CAGWYW chapter. Thank you for all your support! And the name credit of the story goes to Jes (LyricandMelody from twitter). Check out her Who I Am day stuff!!! I hope you guys enjoy this new story- I have a lot planned for this =D**


	2. Catch Me

Flashes were going off through the large mirror at the end of the shop. Miley was getting tired of all the attention that was constantly following her around. She was shopping for a dress. What was so special about that? Another strike of bright light hit her face causing her to toss her head back and groan in frustration. The only thing that could save her was the vibration of her phone- an indication that the mysterious, curly haired cutie was texting her. As if on cue, her phone started to make a ruckus in her back pocket. She slapped her hand over her mouth. She was currently turning red as all the other shoppers were looking towards her to see where the loud ring tone was coming from. Curse herself for not putting her phone on silent. She prodded towards the back corner and flipped open her phone. Her mood was brightened up as she heard the caller's voice.

"Hello?" she whispered in a hushed tone, still embarrassed from the what happened earlier.

"Hello?" the voice chuckled back. Apparently the other person was amused as to why Miley sounded like she was sneaking into a bank.

"Nick?" Miley asked in anticipation, causing her voice to gain volume.

"Yeah," Nick smiled through the phone. She was genuinely happy to hear from him. "Is this a good time?" he asked. She nodded, forgetting that she was on the phone. "Hello?" Nick asked again, getting a little nervous from the silence.

"Oh, sorry, I uh..was nodding. Forgot I was on the phone.." Miley trailed, unsure of where she was going with this.

"Don't worry about it," Nick laughed. Miley's smile widened as she heard him laugh. It was a good feeling to know that she could make him laugh. "So, I was thinking..." Miley could hear the anxiety in his voice. "We've been talking...well texting for about a week now," Nick paused, waiting for Miley's reaction.

"Yeah, and its been really nice," Miley replied back.

"Really?" Nick asked.

"Really," Miley giggled. "I even look forward to your texts," Miley's eyes widened as she realized what she just confessed.

"I do too!" Nick accidentally blurted out. The two of them were blushing furiously. Luckily, they were just on the phone. "Um, do you want to go out this Fri-," Nick was cut off as someone grabbed Miley's phone from her hand.

"Hey, lover boy," Demi giggled into the phone. Miley tried to grasp her phone back, but Demi was holding her back.

"Hey, Demi," Nick replied to the havoc, catching on to what exactly was happening on the other end of the phone call.

"Okay, if you're going to ask my sister out, just do it already," Demi barked into the phone. Truth be told, she was getting impatient that Miley had to wait around until the boy had enough nerve to ask her out.

"I just did," Nick fought back. "Before you took the phone," he argued. It seemed he had known Demi forever. Miley always talked about her and he just felt comfortable talking to her.

"Oh," Demi bit her lip and shyly gave the phone back to Miley. "I think I'm going to go now," she pointed towards the fitting room and rushed off. Miley rolled her eyes as she put the phone back to her ear.

"Sorry about that," she sighed. She was afraid Nick would have been scared off by Demi's antics.

"No, its cool. She's cool," Nick answered, making Miley's fear disappear instantly. "So, about Friday night...."

"Its a go."

"Okay, where should I pick you up?" The question panicked Miley. Nick had showed no signs that he knew who she was and she wanted to keep it that way for awhile. She looked at the hoard of photographers that were crowding around the glass window.

"Um, I'll just meet you there. Tell me the place and time," Miley mumbled. She didn't know how long she could keep this from Nick.

* * *

Miley let her curls fall down on her shoulders. She fluffed her hair and reached for her eyeliner. She leaned into the mirror and applied her makeup. Tonight was Friday. Her first date with Nick. She took a deep breath in as she finished the rest of her makeup. She took a final look at her appearance. Nick said not to dress up too extravagant, but enough for a normal date. She rolled her eyes. If only she knew what he meant. She decided on a nice pair of jeans and a blouse that hugged her body comfortably. He told her to meet him at a diner across town. It didn't seem like a romantic place, but he seemed excited about it.

"Demi, I'm leaving," Miley called out as she started to exit out the house. She heard a muffled "Good Luck," come out of Demi's bedroom. She started up on her driveway and peeked around for any photographers. She crawled into her car and looked at the directions Nick had given her. This was going to be a fun night. As she pulled up to the diner, she saw Nick leaning against his mustang. He had a black leather jacket, making him look so much more attractive.

"Hey," Nick breathed as he saw Miley coming towards his car. She beamed at him as she sat on the hood of his car.

"So this is where our date is," Miley tried sounding excited as she took in the old diner. Nick looked confused but he caught on as he looked at the building and chuckled.

"No, silly," he took her hand and led her to the passenger seat of his car. "Its a surprise," he winked, making Miley's insides melt and flip over. He turned in from the other side and settled into his seat. "So, how has your week been, my lady," Nick grinned over to her head. She shook her head from his cheesiness.

"Its been good," Miley smiled. "Demi and I went shopping the other day," she knew this kind of talk would bore him, but she honestly had nothing else in mind.

"Yeah? What did you guys buy?" Nick asked, genuinely interested in whatever she had to say. Miley looked over at him and laughed. "What?"

"That you're actually interested," she giggled. Nick shook his head playfully.

"Well, you're an interesting girl," Nick offered. He turned his attention towards the rode to avoid any awkwardness.

"Thank you," she replied. "How about your week. How was it?"

"I practiced with the band. We're actually trying to get someone to notice us. Its been really tough- you know breaking out in the business," he vented. Miley nodded her head understandingly. She remembered what it was like for her father when she was younger.

"What do you think you're going to do if you ever do get a break?" Miley asked. She had witnessed how much fame had changed her father and she was scared Nick might fall into the same trap.

"What do you mean?" Nick turned the car, displaying the fact that they had reached the destination. He turned towards Miley to fully comprehend her question.

"Do you think fame would change you?" she shifted in her seat and looked at Nick. He chuckled and thought about it for a moment.

"No, it wouldn't," he said confidentially. Miley weakly smiled and looked at their surroundings. It was a grassy field with a small parking lot cleared out in the middle. In front of their car was a big screen "Its a drive in movie," Nick explained as he saw Miley's eyes dance around the place. "You said you liked all the brat pack movies from the eighties and well...I thought we might watch Breakfast Club like they did back in the day." He was blushing. Nick was extremely nervous for Miley's reaction. Fortunately for him, her face lighted up right away.

"Its beautiful," she grinned. He smiled at her and stepped out of the car and pressed play near the screen. He saw that Miley was already settled on the roof of his car. He smiled. She looked beautiful as the sunset was settling behind her figure. He climbed up beside her after taking out the dinner he had brought. Miley grabbed the sandwiches he had in his basket and started to eat right away. This was perfect.

Around two hours later, the movie stopped rolling and Miley snuggled deeper into Nick as his hand was placed loosely around her waist.

"That was really cool," Miley grinned up at him. He smiled at her and took her hand as they slid down the car.

"I'm glad you liked it," Nick said as he turned to turn off the movie. He looked back at her. She looked so happy and he was glad he could make that happen. "Now time to drop the pretty lady back," Nick frowned as he got into the car.

"I didn't want this night to end," Miley confessed as he started pulling out of the place.

"Me too," Nick placed his hand out, signaling Miley to the same. Once she did, he held it tightly as he drove through the streets. He listened as Miley babbled energetically about how she loved the movie.

"Eat my shorts," Miley laughed. "That movie is a classic," she giggled.

"Yeah, its actually my first time seeing it," Nick chuckled nervously.

"Seriously?" Miley's eyes bulged out. Nick nodded. She shook her head sympathetically. "Deprived child," she sighed in a playful manner. Nick laughed at her antics. She turned her head to look at where exactly they were passing. "What's that," Miley nodded her head towards a line of cars.

"I don't know. Do you want to check it out," Nick asked curiously. He normally wouldn't have been up to doing spontaneous things, but with Miley he felt differently. Miley bobbed her head up and down excitedly. "I'll take that as a yes," Nick chuckled as he turned into the line. They waited as the car passed a person. Nick rolled down his windows to see a petite blond managing a booth. "Excuse me, what exactly are we paying for?" he asked as he gave her ten dollars, covering an entrance fee for both Miley and him. The blond tilted her head in confusion. Who pays without knowing what they're paying for?

"A carnival," she replied, earing a squeal of delight from Miley as Nick pulled into a wide parking lot. There were tents everywhere. They could see a big ferris wheel planted in the middle of the extravaganza.

"This might be fun," Miley announced when Nick parked his car. He smiled- he was thinking the same thing. The two linked their arms as they entered the fun filled place.

* * *

Miley threw her arm back and aimed for the target. Bang! She hit the bottle and smiled. Okay, now just one more bottle and she could win the teddy bear. She threw her arm back again and bit her lip. Nick was watching her closely. She released the ball and closed her eyes. She didn't hear anything. Darn, she missed. She sighed sadly and turned towards Nick.

"You could have just let me play," Nick laughed.

"I'm a grown woman, Nick," she pointed her finger at him. She grabbed his hand as they weaved their way through the carnival. "Let's get some cotton candy," Miley bounced up and down.

"You're already on a high," Nick teased as he watched the brunette make her way over to the candy. She stuck out her tongue and turned to grab her wallet, but Nick reacted faster as he stuck a five dollar bill into the lady's hand.

"Hey," Miley whined. She was about to pay for her _own_ food. Nick shook his head and placed a hand around her waist as she waited for the lady to whip her up a delicious batch of cotton candy. "Hey, I need to go to the restroom. You mind waiting here," Nick nodded towards an empty table when Miley got her food. She nodded silently, enjoying her candy. He gave a fast nod and walked off. It seemed it was like ten minutes until Nick tip toed back with his arms behind his back. Miley's eyebrows furrowed as she was trying to figure out what he was up to. "What?" Miley looked at Nick's expression.

"Here," Nick revealed his hands and gave her a small teddy bear.

"I thought I told you I'm a grown woman," Miley glared at him.

"You are. I didn't win it. I argued with the guy back there," he blushed. He looked around nervously as he heard Miley giggling.

"What did you tell him?"

"That he ruined your concentration with all the music in the background," Nick chuckled. "I just gave him a lame argument. Plus, you deserved it," he nodded at the teddy bear. "You tried you best." Miley smiled and melted into his arms. He was being oh so perfect.

"You want to go on the ferris wheel," Miley asked as she pulled away from the hug. "As our last thing to do while we're here."

"Yeah, that would be cool," Nick grinned as he held Miley's hand. She shifted her weight as she leaned into him. They looked like they were completely in love as they walked towards the ride. "You know what I like about carnivals," Nick asked as he handed the man his ticket for the ferris wheel. Miley shook her head. "They're going to remind me of you for the rest of my life."

"You like saying cheesy stuff, don't you," Miley giggled as she took her seat in the ferris wheel. Nick laughed and sat next to her. He put his arm around her and looked into her eyes.

"Yes, I do." They wheel started to take off as the two were lifted into the air. It moved slowly and finally stayed put at the top. "Wow," Nick breathed as he took in the city lights. He looked down at the carnival to see all the heads dotting their way through the grounds.

"Its beautiful," Miley agreed she dug herself deeper into his chest and stayed there silently, purely enjoying th moment.

"Speaking of cheesy things," Nick cleared his throat, causing Miley to tilt her head, getting a better view of him. "You're beautiful," he smiled. Miley grinned and started to lean in for a kiss. They were just a few millimeters apart when they were interrupted by a flash of blind light. Miley didn't open her eyes. She already knew what just happened. Nick's eyes, however, flew open.

"What was that," Nick said awkwardly as he looked around. In the cart before them, a man was leaning over with a professional camera. "Why is a strange man taking pictures of us," Nick said slowly as he looked towards Miley. She had a guilty expression on her face. She looked down and mumbled something that was completely unclear for Nick. "I can't hear you," Nick replied.

"I'm Billy Ray Stewart's daughter," Miley confessed. She had just let out a secret. It would change everything between her and Nick. She just knew it.

**A/N You do not know how hard this chapter was to get up. Fanfiction was not letting me upload my document. I finally replaced another document with this format. Okay, the first thing I want to say is, trust me the plot is NOT what you think it is. There's a huge twist coming in a couple of chapters and the main focus is not on Billy Ray. So keep your eyes open. I put SOME hints in this chapter, but I had to be careful. **


	3. Superstar

Miley could feel the tension building up as Nick was engulfed in silence. It was a couple of seconds before a small smile started to appear on his face.

"You're not mad?" Miley asked nervously, rubbing her arm for comfort. She looked at him hesitantly as he shook his head.

"No, I don't care whose daughter you are," Nick answered with certainty. He held his gaze as Miley tried to find any sign of doubt in his chocolate orbs. "I mean it," he placed his hands over hers and leaned in. They were about to seal the deal when they were once again rudely interrupted by another round of flashes.

"Dammit," Miley muttered under her breath. She looked at Nick apologetically and then stood up to place her hands on her hips. She looked at the paparazzi that was camped out in the cart next to them and pursed her lips, sending out a threatening glare. "One more shot and I'll sue your ass until you don't even have a penny on your name." The man shrunk back into his seat and started to toy with his camera, leaving the two in complete privacy. "God," Miley grumbled as she snuggled back into Nick. She laced her fingers with his and sighed peacefully, leaving all thoughts of their interruption behind. "Now, where were we?"

"I think we were around here," Nick grinned as he dipped his head a little lower to capture Miley's lips. He tugged on her bottom lip as she leaned further into him. His hands found their way around her waist as the two began to enjoy their first kiss. Miley took the courage to swipe her tongue across his lips; He granted her instant access and their tongues collided at full speed, displaying the hunger the two had for each other.

* * *

Demi began to pour her milk into the pastel blue bowl she had retrieved from the kitchen cabinet. She was too busy staring at her cereal to notice a messy looking Miley dragging her feet into the kitchen.

"Good morning," Miley yawned as she untangled her hair from the messy bun. "Sleep well?" Miley asked, prancing towards her sister.

"Yeah, how was the date?" Demi grinned from ear to ear, turning towards her best friend. She could see the red rise in Miley's cheeks before her sister turned around to sit at the dining table. "That good, huh?"

"Shut up," the embarrassed girl mumbled as she attempted to hide her face. The failed attempt caused a fit of giggles to arise from both of the girls.

"So tell me more about this dream guy." Demi set her bowl of cereal down and started to dig in as Miley bounced up and down in her chair to tell her the story from last night. She watched her little sister babble about the date until she heard a detail that perked her interest. "Wait, so he knows we're famous now?"

"Yeah," Miley shrugged. "He doesn't care though. He was really chill about it." Demi nodded absentmindedly as her brain started turning gears. "What?" Miley asked, noticing Demi's "thinking face."

"You should ask dad…never mind," Demi got up from her seat and went towards the sink to empty out the contents of her bowl.

"No, go on." Curiosity was getting the best of Miley.

"Ask him to listen to Nick's band. I mean dad's been scouting for someone to be his protégée or whatever for awhile now." Miley bit her lip, unsure of Demi's suggestion. "Oh, come on. He's a good guy and his music was awesome from that night at the bar. Are you going to keep him undiscovered just because he's dating you?" she raised her eyebrows at her sister and Miley giggled.

"Fine. You always know how to guilt me," Miley chuckled. "Nick would never go for this," she added as an afterthought.

"Then don't tell him. And just because dad listens to his band doesn't mean he's going to like the music. You'll give him a shot, but he needs to prove himself. So it won't totally be all you."

"Yeah, but I've only known him for a week."

"Yeah…and your point is? He's talented. Whether or not you've known him for a week," Demi placed her hands on her hips to emphasize her point. Miley rolled her eyes and finally slumped her shoulders down in defeat.

"Fine."

* * *

Miley was currently pacing in front of her dad's office. It had been a long time since she came to his door, but she still hadn't gotten up the nerve to even touch to knob. To her surprise, the door opened by itself. She jumped back in shock only to recover after seeing her dad's face pop out.

"Hey, there bud," he smiled. Good. He was sober. She smiled innocently as she took a step into his office. He was easy to deal with when he didn't have any alcohol in his system. "What do you need?" he asked. Miley rolled her eyes. This was the first time she had talked to him in days and this was the first question he asked her.

"Uh, I was wondering. I have this friend who's a musician at a local bar. And he's really good…" she trailed, unsure of what to exactly say. She didn't want her dad to think she was just recommending someone because she was dating the guy.

"Tell him to meet me at the studio," Billy said, taking a good look at his watch."Six next Friday. I'm busy until then," he smiled back at the brunette. He seemed to understand what his daughter was trying to propose.

"Thanks, dad," Miley said, knowing well enough what kind of opportunity he was giving Nick. She breathed out a sigh of relief as she turned her heal and walked towards Demi's room.

* * *

Miley opened the door as Demi trailed behind her. The door slammed shut as the two girls left a world of flashing lights behind them.

"Why can't we ever get rid of them?" Demi grumbled as she trudged towards the bar where Joe was shaking his head at the ladies.

"Just can't stay away, huh?" Joe joked as Demi and Miley pulled the stools away from the counter.

"Yes, Joe. We just couldn't stay away from your manly must," Demi swiped her hand in the air, pretending as though Joe stunk. She giggled as Joe stuck out his tongue and proceeded to pour the girls a drink. "Where's Nicky Poo," she glanced around. For the past week, Demi and Miley had been hanging out at the bar and they had become extremely close to the brothers.

"Yeah, we're going to be late," Miley looked at her watch nervously. She told Nick's band where the studio was, but it was all still a surprise to Nick and Joe. If they knew, they would have backed out and not let the girls help them. Demi tugged on Miley's coat to calm her down a little bit.

"He should be out in a little bit. He's just finishing up a song he's been working on," Joe nodded towards the back door where Nick kept all his stage equipment. "So where are we going again?" Joe asked.

"It's a surprise, Joe," Demi rolled her eyes. She motioned for another glass and Joe huffed at her response, but poured her another beer anyways.

"What's this surprise anyways? How do you know _both_ Nick and I will like it?" Joe's question was directed more towards Miley than Demi, but that didn't stop the raven haired diva.

"Um, why don't you just wait and see," Demi playfully tilted her head and jumped off the stool. She made her way towards the back of the bar, clearly getting impatient from waiting for Nick. She pounded on the door. "Nick, we're going to be late," she yelled, hoping her voice would make it through the thick walls. She was in luck as the door swung open, revealing Nick in a blue collared shirt, complete with jeans and converse.

"Missy, you need to learn patience," Nick playfully scolded Demi. His eyes trailed towards the bar to see Miley giggling from their antics. "There is my lady," Nick grinned as he made his way over to her. "Hello there," Nick softly kissed Miley's forehead, earning a groan from Joe.

"Can you keep the PDA to a complete minimum?" Joe complained, ducking under the counter to magically appear by Nick's eyes. "I think you're scarring people's eyes."

"Agreed," Demi laughed, placing her finished glass on the bar. "We should get going. This surprise does have a time limit you know. And my car is too beautiful to just lay idle next to some shitty bar."

"Hey, this is the coolest place in town," Joe defended. He was the first to start heading towards the door with Demi hot on his heels.

"You wish," she muttered, leaving Nick and Miley behind, alone.

"So what is this surprise?" Nick asked as his arm snaked around her waist and his mouth nibbling the skin on her neck. He was hoping that if he completely charmed her, she would spill the secret.

"Not working, mister," Miley giggled, deciding to run towards Demi's car in full speed. Nick laughed as he started behind her. The two tumbled into the car in a fit of giggles, earning confused looks from Joe and Demi, who were in the front seats.

"Weirdoes," Demi muttered under her breath as she sped away from the bar.

"Whoa, crazy driver, huh?" Joe joked. She shook her head and laughed.

"_This_ is nowhere near crazy, Hun," she looked up to see her rearview mirror. "Looks like we've got company," Demi tilted her head to the right to get a better view of the cars that were following them. One car switched into the right lane and sped up; the people in the car held their cameras out and opened their windows, getting a good shot of Demi in the front seat. "God, why can't we have just a moment of damn privacy," she starting shifting gears and swerved right, trying to shake her tail. "That's got to do it," she exclaimed as she swerved the car into an ally and made her way through the back streets of LA.

"Years of practice my friend," Miley explained to Joe's shocked face. He was gripping his seat tightly and looking around to see if the cars were still around.

"How the hell do you guys deal with that?" Joe shot his hands through his head. He wasn't over the excitement just yet.

"You get used to it," Demi grumbled as she pulled over to a gray building. "We're here," she pulled her keys out of the ignition and slipped on her sunglasses. "You guys are going to _love_ this." Nick and Joe followed her out with confused faces. Miley took a deep breath before she exited the car. She caught up with the trio and linked her arms with Nick.

"Promise me you won't kill me after this?" she whispered into his ear before nuzzling into his chest.

"I thought you said I would like this?" Nick replied back. He held her close as they walked into the building.

"You will," Miley promised, tilting her head to get a better view of Nick. "At least I think so," she giggled nervously. They were already in the lobby of the studio, making Nick and Joe realize exactly where they were.

"Wait, is this HWR Records?" Joe asked as his eyes scanned over the big blue letters that were plastered above the receptionist's desk. Both Miley and Demi ignored his question as they made their way into the elevator. It was a silent ride as Joe and Nick were trying to sum up what was exactly happening. The elevator chimed and the four stepped out heading towards the studio. "So, um, is this an actual studio?" Joe asked, trying to break the silence.

"Joe?" Demi asked innocently as she opened the studio door. He raised his eyebrows in interest and Demi smirked. "Shut up and enjoy the moment," she walked inside, revealing Nick's band in the recording space and Billy Ray at the controls.

"Wow," Joe breathed as he looked at the whole set up. He turned towards Nick who was currently trying to process everything.

"Alrighty, don't waste another minute," Demi ushered Nick into the recording space and closed the door. She turned the speaker on and looked at her dad. "Good Ol' Billy back in the studio," she joked. Miley could sense the bitterness in Demi's voice, but everyone else in the studio was clueless to it. "Start to magic," she took a step back as she watched her dad give directions to the band. Nick and his band huddled together to decide what song to record. It took a moment to decide until they got back to their places. Miley could see the nervous glint in his eyes as he started to sing. Her eyes wandered to each band member until she finally settled back on Nick and got lost as she watched him perform; he gave it his all and to her it was truly magical. She could see the emotion written all over his face and she began to tune out everyone and everything around her. She hadn't realized they finished the takes until Demi tapped on her shoulder.

"They were amazing," Demi whispered into her ear and Miley nodded in agreement. They deserved a record deal and hopefully her dad noticed that. Billy switched a couple of the controls and spoke into the mic.

"You guys can come out now," he announced. Nick slung his guitar off his shoulders and came into the room with his hands dug into his pocket. "Son, you were great," he patted Nick's back in encouragement. "I think we can start signing the papers and everything if that's okay with y'all," Billy nodded towards the band. They all nodded in excitement and started to talk amongst themselves as Nick walked over towards Miley. She grasped Demi's hand as the curly haired boy stopped in front of her.

"You guys did great," Demi nodded as she left the pair alone. Nick looked at Miley and an awkward silence settled between the two.

"In my defense, I told you not to be mad at me before," Miley shot out really quickly before Nick could get a word out. She shifted uncomfortably as Nick opened his mouth and closed it again. For the second time since he had known the girl, he was speechless. And for the second time since Miley had known Nick, she had no idea what his reaction was going to be.

**A/N The story is going to move a little fast in the beginning till I get to around the fifth chapter where the actual conflict is set up. Then it starts to slow down and things actually get interesting. I hope you guys enjoy this chapter even thought its kind of a filler. I promise you will love the next chapter. Especially since its rated M, haha. Thanks for the support, I hope you like the story so far!!!!**


	4. State of Emergency

"Miley, this is just…" Nick trailed. He looked at the brunette and sighed. "I don't know what to say." He rubbed his face in exhaustion and took a good look at his band. Everyone was mingling energetically amongst themselves. They all looked very happy.

"How about I take you out to dinner? To make up for this," Miley grasped at a last attempt to mend things with Nick.

"Mi," Nick said. "I'm not mad. I'm just trying to catch up with everything that's happening. It's a lot, you know?" He rubbed the back of his neck nervously. "I really appreciate the chance you've given me," he took a hold of her hands and rubbed them softly. Miley tilted her head slightly to the right as Nick came in closer. He circled his arms around her and gave her a warm hug. "Thank you," he whispered in her ear.

"You're so talented. You deserve this and so much more." Her hands found themselves cupped around his face. She gently stroked his cheeks. "How about we go out on a celebratory dinner," she suggested. He smirked at her as he went in for a gentle kiss.

"Can't get enough of me, huh?" Nick raised his eyebrows cockily as he stared down at her. She giggled softly and laid her head down on his chest.

"I think it's your cologne," Miley sniffed. She let out a chuckle as Nick groaned at her response.

"You're dating me because of my _cologne?_" He interlocked his fingers with hers and started to sway their arms side to side.

"Yup, at least that's what she told me," Demi interrupted. A small mischievous smile was starting to conquer her features.

"Ha-ha, funny," Nick rolled his eyes sarcastically. Miley laughed and snuggled closer to him, allowing him to rest an arm around her waist.

"It's true," Demi winked and took a final turn towards the door, trying to suppress any signs of laughter until she hit the hallway and the door closed behind her. Once the door slammed shut, Nick's head snapped towards Miley. His eyes wide with fear.

"Seriously?" Nick asked, naively believing Demi. Miley clapped a hand over her mouth and started to giggle. She tumbled over into her dad's chair from her laughter. Her volume was increasing and everyone in the studio looked towards the couple. Nick was down at his knees trying to snap her out of her giggle fit. "Miley?" Nick begged. Her laughter was becoming contagious and Nick start to find a smile forming on his own face. "Miley, stop," he held his stomach as he was chuckling. She shook her head.

"I can't stop," she held herself down on her seat and started to take deep breaths. She bounced up and down to get the extra signs of laughter out of her. "Okay, I think I've stopped," she took a slow, long breath in and closed her eyes, trying to forget about what happened that made her laugh.

"What was so funny?" Nick asked once he calmed himself down too. Miley shook her head and shrugged.

"To be honest. I don't really know. I think it was just your facial expression," she grinned. Nick was still kneeling down in front of her. His chocolate brown orbs were staring up at her, giving her the full attention that was bringing butterflies to her stomach. Without thinking, Miley leaning in for a sweet, soft kiss. She licked his lips and pulled away. She looked around the studio to find the band staring at the couple's moment. She immediately started blushing and looked towards Nick, who was emulating her same actions. They laughed nervously and nodded towards his band as they got up and walked towards the door. Miley quickly closed the door behind them.

"God, that was embarrassing," Nick chuckled. He took a hold of her hand and laced their fingers together. He lifted their hands and kissed each of her knuckles as he waited for her response.

"You think? At least you've known them for awhile," Miley bent her head down from embarrassment. She pushed the elevator button a couple of times and wrapped her arm around Nick's neck. He bent his head down to allow their noses to snuggle against each other.

"Whatever," Nick sighed and pushed Miley into the open elevator. "They'll forget about it in like a couple of minutes," he turned around to press the lobby button. Once the doors closed Miley reached over to the elevator handle and pulled it. "What are you doing," Nick exclaimed as he felt the elevator slam to a halt.

Miley threw her head back and smirked as she slammed him into the elevator wall.

"You need to relax," she grinned up at him. She felt Nick's muscles loosed up as she brought her lips to his. Nick was beginning to get a hang of what she was doing and decided to take over. He slammed her against the other side of the elevator and licked his tongue across her lips, begging for an opening. He felt his confidence raising as he his fingers started to creep up her shirt and place them on her bear skin. Miley shivered with the contact and jumped to wrap her legs around her waist.

"Wow, you're amazing," Nick breathed in between kisses. He felt Miley smile into the kiss from the compliment. His hands rose a little higher and circled around her back, massaging her. Miley leaned back and gave him a dazzling smile and hopped off. She straightened her hair and pulled the lever again to start the elevator. "Finished already?" Nick raised his eyebrows as he was trying to fix his hair and his clothes.

"You're not getting anything more," Miley teased. "That's for the 100th date," Miley winked at him. He grinned at her and walked closer to her.

"What if I'm a really, really good boy," he whispered and dipped his head to give her small kisses on her neck.

"We'll see," she pulled away from him when the elevator doors started to open up. Two people replaced them as they walked out of the elevator. As they took their leave, Miley could faintly hear the two complain of the long elevator wait. And she silently giggled to herself.

* * *

Miley straightened out her blue dress. She especially called up Max Azria to buy a specific dress for this date. It was her one month anniversary with Nick and it had to go perfectly. Their relationship was going strong and she could feel the intensity of it burning through her blood whenever she looked at him. She took one final look at the mirror and started to hop down the stairs. She fetched her shoes and walked into the living room, finding Demi sprawled across the couch.

"You need to get a boy," Miley leaned over to give Demi a soft kiss on the forehead. "Okay," she playfully scolded as she scooted Demi over to get room on the couch.

"Yes, a boy like yours who is way too whipped for his own good," Demi retorted. She held a bag of popcorn in her hand as she kept a solid gaze at the television set.

"Puh lease. You're probably drooling over him in your sleep," Miley reached over for some popcorn and tossed into her mouth. She took another look at the clock and settled into the couch.

"Relax. The boy would never dare to be late to pick up Miss Miley," Demi fluttered her eyes for effect. Miley rolled her eyes and shook her head in disapproval.

"He is not whipped," she huffed. Right on time, the doorbell rung and echoed itself throughout the mansion. "That's him. Bye," she waved to her sister and slipped her shoes on before getting the door. She opened the door to find Nick neatly dressed in a light blue, formal shirt. He tucked in his shirt and completed himself with a fancy pair of dress shoes.

"You look beautiful," Nick grinned and stepped in to give Miley a proper kiss.

"Thank you," she curtsied. "You don't look bad yourself. I mean it. No matter how cheesy that line sounded," Miley chuckled. He grinned back at her and offered his hand as the two waltzed over to his car.

"So, happy one monthiversary," Nick said awkwardly. "I'm really not into celebrating this kind of stuff," he said honestly. Miley gave him genuine smile.

"I know. That's why I'm making you do it," she grinned. She buckled up and turned towards him to give him a thank you kiss. "It means a lot that you would celebrate it even if you aren't really into these kinds of things."

"Anything to go out on a date with you," he placed his hand on her knee and leaned in for another kiss. This one lasting a little bit longer than the last. He slid his tongue as she parted her mouth open and leaned in further. Much to his dismay, she leaned away.

"We're going to be late," Miley explained. She shook her head when Nick groaned and started up the engine. He tilted his head back as he started to back out of her driveway.

"So, I think you're going to like this place," Nick smiled at her. He held out his hand. She took notice and slid her slender fingers into his grip. "It's Italian."

"You can't give me little hints and torture my like this, _Nicholas,_" Miley glared at him. Immediately slipping her hand out of his and crossing her arms. "Either tell me or stop tempting me." He let out a small chuckle and picked up speed.

"Well, I guess we have to hurry up and get there faster then," he mumbled.

"I guess so," Miley tossed her head back and laughed. He looked at her up and down as he stopped at the next red light.

"You know. Either you just let me kiss you senseless or stop tempting me," he licked his lips.

"What do you mean?" Miley asked innocently. She knew fully well _exactly_ what he was talking about.

"Either you completely cover yourself up or you don't wear dresses like that," Nick pointed at her. She suppressed a giggle.

"Dresses like what, Nicholas?" she leaned in and placed a hand on his thigh. He gulped and pushed her hand off gently.

"You're such a tease," Nick rolled his eyes as he turned the corner. He made another turn and ended up in the restaurant parking lot. "So, if you continue this little cherade, you're totally going to miss eating here," Nick gestured his hand to the place. Miley's eyes lighted up as she saw where they were.

"How the hell did you get reservations here?" her eyes were bulging out.

"Being Billy Ray Stewart's new protégée has its perks, Miss Stewart," he winked. He got out of his car and opened the door for her.

"I'm his daughter and I can't get reservations to the Summit House."

"Yeah, because daughters can't flirt with waitresses who are in charge of the reservation stuff," Nick explained as he looped his hand into hers. Miley snapped her hands out of his hold to land them on her waist.

"Excuse me?" she raised her eyebrows in question. Nick chuckled.

"Kidding," He kissed her neck and led her inside. "Joe's buddy owns the place. They were old business partners and he gave me a reservation." Miley rolled her eyes and walked towards the podium. "Two reservations under Lucas," Nick pronounced to the waiter. The waiter seated the couple and left them alone as they waited to order.

"So, how has your week been," Miley lifted a glass of water to her lips to take a sip.

"It's good. You're dad just booked a debut concert for me at the Grammy nominations. It's in two weeks."

"Really? Oh, Nick. That's great!" Miley squealed. She gave his hand a quick squeeze and beamed at him. "Are you excited?"

"Yup. Only if my leading lady will be in the audience cheering me on…" Nick trailed, giving Miley a shy look. She shook her head and giggled.

"Of course I'll be there," she gave his hand a small rub of assurance. He smiled back at her.

* * *

Miley grabbed Demi's hand as the nerves rushed through her. This was Nick's first public performance and she didn't know how he was going to handle it.

"Relax, I think you're more freaked out than superstar over there," Demi gave a nod at Nick, who was currently getting ready to go on stage. "Did you give him a good luck kiss," Demi teased.

"Yes," Miley curtly replied. She glared at her sister and her grip tightened. "I just want him to do well," she confessed. "I hope the world sees his talent tonight," Miley sighed.

"Me too, Sis," she pulled her hand out of Miley's grip and walked closer as Nick walked out on stage. "Come on, let's get a better view." Miley followed behind her as the heard Nick introducing himself and strumming the starting chords to his debut song "Who I Am." He played with so much passion that something in Miley started up. She could feel a burning desire as he jumped up and interacted with his band as he was singing the song.

"Wow," Miley gulped. Her insides were flipping over and her knees were starting to give out. Nick bounced his head up and down as he got into the music and bit his lips as he stopped singing. He looked completely adorable and all Miley wanted to do at this point was make him completely hers. He gave a short Thank you and proceeded to walk off stage.

Once Nick stepped backstage he took off his guitar and headed straight towards Miley and Demi. He gave Demi a slight hug and turned towards Miley. He planted a sweet kiss on her lips, but to his surprise she grabbed onto his jacket and made the kiss deeper.

"I have something to talk to you about," Miley said quickly and dragged him and into his dressing room. She bolted the door and turned around to face a confused Nick. "Do you know how much of a turn on that performance was," Miley whined and stepped closer to him. She swayed back and forth, waiting for his response. Even though it was torturing her.

Nick grinned at her.

"What?" she asked, obviously not understanding what was running through his mind.

"You don't know…" Nick trailed as he led her to the couch. "How much you turn me on," he slammed her into the couch and perfectly landed his lips onto hers. She snuck her hands under his shirt and rubbed his abs. He groaned from her touch and slid a hand under her short dress, causing her to arch her back. He grinned that she had such a reaction to his actions. He proceeded to lift the dress up slowly and unzipped the back. She pulled away from the kiss and finished the deed.

Again the two fell back into their make out session. Miley flipped Nick over and started to unbutton his shirt. She took it off subtly as her tongue slipped into his mouth. He pulled off his undershirt and both of their breaths became ragged. She placed her hands on his dress pants and waited for Nick's nod of approval before tearing them off. He fingered the clasp of her bra and finally clicked it off. Both of them were left bear chested as the leaned in for yet another make out session.

Miley thrusted her hips and collided with Nick. He moaned into her mouth and flipped her over. She grabbed the waist band of his boxers and slowly slid them off until Nick finally kicked them off. She caught sight of how aroused Nick was and she smiled mischievously.

"You think you're so cool, huh?" Nick asked hotly into her years, she nibbled at his neck and sucked at his skin. This was the last move to push Nick over the edge. He fingered her panties and slid them off. He took one last look into her eyes, which were darkened with lust, and thrusted into her. She tossed her head back from the contact.

"Oh, god, Nick," she moaned as he slid slowly into her.

"You feel so good, Mi," he groaned. He started to pick up speed and thrusted in and out of her. She yelped in pleasure as he hit her good spots. He started to bring himself into her harder and faster. Her face contorted with pleasure and Nick could feel himself do the same. "Oh god, you feel damn good," he said in between breaths.

"Nick, I think…" Miley gasped. Nick placed his mouth over hers to convey he was about to let in too. He gave one last strong push and felt her walls tighten around him. They both collapsed into each other.

**A/N Longest chapter I've written by far, haha. I'm slowly getting there. The real story starts next chapter. This was all fluff so you guys know what they're relationship is like and what not. I hope you've been keeping your eyes open. I didn't put any clues to whats going to happen next but everything will sort of click after the next chapter, hopefully. I hope you guys liked it!**


	5. Liar Liar

Miley tightly grasped Nick's hand as the cold wind grazed their faces. Her head found a spot on the crook of his neck as the two silently sat watching the sunset.

"I forgot how beautiful Venice Beach is. Especially in the summer," Miley sighed. Her fingers grazed his smooth skin until she settled back in his hand again.

"Yeah, it's ridiculous," Nick grinned. He slipped his hand out of her grasp and snuggled it around her waist. "So, it's officially been three months since we started going out," Nick randomly mentioned. Miley nodded her head absentmindedly; she was too busy surveying the crash of the waves on the delicate sand. "Miley," Nick tried to snap her out of her trance.

"Oh, sorry, what's up," she beamed up at him. She turned towards him and pulled up her legs to sit cross legged on the bench. He cupped her face and gave her a light kiss before proceeding on to what he was actually going to say.

"So, it's been three months," Nick continued nervously. He was rubbing the sides of his arms as a nervous habit. Miley looked at him intently, curious to where he was going with this conversation. It took Nick a couple of moments to try to gain some composure. "I got you something," Nick blurted out unexpectedly. Miley tossed her head to the side in confusion as Nick fumbled around with his pockets.

"What is it?" Miley asked as curiosity consumed her. She lifted herself up about an inch to get a better look at what Nick was searching for. His hands seemed to have finally found what he had been looking for. He pulled out a velvet blue box from his khaki pants. The box looked so vulnerable as it sat neatly in his soft hands.

"I just wanted to let you know. That I'm serious. About you and me," Nick hoarsely whispered. She took a hold of the box and smiled weakly. This was the sweetest thing a guy had done for her in a long time. Miley drew a deep breath as she clicked the box open. Inside, sat a small band of silver.

"Oh, god. It's beautiful, Nick," she gasped. She lifted the ring out of the box and looked at the engraving within it. Inside, on its metallic walls was _I Promise_ in a neat cursive.

"It's supposed to be vague. Like I promise to do everything for you. The promise is like…infinite," Nick explained. His eyebrows furrowed in worry as he tried to grasp every little detail of emotion that ran through Miley's face.

"Nick, this is amazing. Thank you," Miley lifted herself up and climbed into Nick's lap. She planted small kisses all over face until she finally drove herself onto his lips. They moved in sync and completely tuned out the world around them. She didn't even notice the beautiful waves crashing onto the shore. They stood still in time for a couple of moments until the two lovers tried to catch a breath.

"I'm glad you liked it," Nick gave her a soft smile. "I didn't know if it was too early for that sort of thing," he stood up and lent Miley a hand.

"No, it's a perfect third month gift," she said as she slipped on the ring and stood up to place herself alongside Nick. Nick gently grabbed her arm and pulled it up to get a good look of the ring on her delicate finger. It looked right. It fit perfectly. Almost too perfectly. He tucked their hands together and started walked towards the shoreline.

"So, my tour starts really soon," Nick brought up the untouched subject between them. He was giving a short promo tour for about a month in a couple of weeks. Miley frowned and looked down at her feet. She started to kick the sand as she drowned in the thoughts of leaving Nick. "I want you to come along," Nick nudged her gently. She bit her lips and sighed.

"Yeah, but it's _your_ thing," Miley emphasized the "your" a bit louder than the rest of the sentence. "I want you to enjoy it and just kind of do it for you," her eyes met his. She gave him a small, encouraging smile and wrapped her arms around his waist for a sideways hug. "Plus, I don't want you to stop hooking up with groupies just because of me." Nick rolled his eyes.

"Uh, if you're my groupie it wouldn't matter," he retorted, earning a light giggle from his girlfriend. She tightened her hug and snuggled deeper into his chest, embracing his warmth and comfort. She would be missing his smell and his touch for a whole month. How she had become so attached to him was a complete mystery to her. They have been only dating for three months and already she felt completely vulnerable in their relationship.

"I can't wait to hear the rest of your music," Miley attempted to change the conversation, but Nick didn't look like he was going to let her.

"Yeah, it's almost recorded. Mi, come on. Just come with me, please?" By this time, the duo had already stopped walking and was facing each other. Nick stared down into her and Miley bent her head. She didn't want to ruin his moment and she didn't want to become too dependent on him.

"We'll see," she finally said after moments of her own thoughts. Nick groaned and gently grabbed her hands in hopes of begging her one more last time.

"Please? You're my good luck charm. And I wouldn't have gotten here without you," Nick pressed on. He could see Miley's features start to crack as she began to cave in. Her face became softer and her eyes gave up their defense.

"Okay, fine," Miley sighed. She saw his smile starting to pop up and she couldn't help but smile herself. If only they knew the events that were about to come.

* * *

Demi flipped her laptop open and bounced her head up and down as she waited for her home screen to load. She needed to get faster internet speed, she decided. Finally, her page appeared and she started darting her mouse in different directions. Her focus was on the gossip tab that had Miley's named in bold. She clicked it open and started to read the headline. _Venice Valentines._ Demi couldn't help but giggle at the corny title. It was just her luck as Miley was just entering Demi's room.

"Whatcha giggling about, sis?" Miley inquired. She scooted over Demi's extra chair and plopped herself beside her sister. Her eyes caught on and she automatically groaned. "They were there?"

"Yeah, apparently you had an unknown chaperone for you romantic date," Demi laughed. Good thing she wasn't dating anyone in particular right now. It always annoyed her that her personal life made it into public channels.

"I did not see them there," Miley whined. She slid the laptop closer to her and started to scroll down. The pictures were taken from afar. There were pictures of them shopping on the boardwalk, talking on the bench, and strolling on the beach. The last set of pictures was of Miley getting into Nick's car as they ended their date.

"Ohh, look there's an article," Demi pointed as Miley zoomed through the pictures. Miley glared at her and Demi shrugged. She took her laptop back and clicked open the article. The topic was centered on the ring that Nick had given to Miley. Demi tried to choke back a laugh as she read through the contents. "It says you're getting married," she jerked her head back and started to laugh obnoxiously. "Why didn't you invite me to the wedding?"

"Demi!" Miley shrieked. She was annoyed by the unneeded comments the media were adding about her love life. Nick and Miley hadn't even released a statement that they were actually dating. "God, stupid people with no lives," she mumbled under her breath. Her cheeks became red with frustration. It was an amusing thing to see Miley this annoyed.

"Relax, little one," Demi soothed her. She bit her tongue so that she could hold back her laughter. Miley rolled her eyes and got up from her seat.

"Whatever. I didn't come in here for this," Miley motioned towards the computer. "I came in to tell you that Nick gave me two tickets to his opening, debut concert complete with backstage passes. It's in two weeks."

"Oh, wow. That's so exciting," Demi squealed. Nick had become like a little brother she had never had. They would fight and bicker often but Demi was proud of his success. His Grammy debut pushed him into the eye of the media and immediately everyone started to talk. The reception was so good that Billy Ray had pushed him into a promotion tour that would start in two weeks. "I remember it was just yesterday when he was playing at the local bar," Demi joked.

"Yeah, a lot has changed in just three months," Miley's mind wandered to their first date. The conversation they had weighed her down as she recounted it.

"What's wrong," Demi's sister senses perked up.

"It's just; I don't want him to change. You know how dad did," Miley rolled up her sleeves to view the fresh bruises from last night's events. They weren't as big as usual but her arm was swelling a little bit.

"He won't," Demi promised. "He would never do that to you. He isn't like dad and dad isn't like him. They are two completely different people. Do you understand me?" Demi looked into Miley's eyes for any sign of understanding. Miley nodded and looked away.

"I know but I can't help but wonder, you know? Like what if he does? What if he isn't the person I think he is?" Miley asked. Demi couldn't answer her question; the fact was that the two were wondering the same thing and there was something about Miley's statement that hit a nerve. They couldn't figure out what it was so they left it alone.

* * *

Miley looked at her watch as Demi and her climbed out of the town car. She was around two hours early for the concert and she was completely excited. She called Nick earlier in the day, but she conveniently forgot to mention that she was going to show up for his sound check.

"Relax, he'll be fine. You've seen him perform tons of times," Demi tried to reassure the frantic Miley, but it didn't help.

"Um, yeah…in a bar. In front of what, like twenty people max?" Miley checked her outfit one last time as the two snuck through the back entrance of the venue. Hopefully, no one caught site that they were actually there or else a bunch of paparazzi would be heading their way tonight.

"You look fine, Miley," Demi exclaimed once she got annoyed of Miley's frequent wardrobe checks. Her sister was currently standing in place trying to fix her shirt once again.

"I can't just look fine," Miley reasoned. She took a hold of Demi's hand and headed for the bathroom door that was located to their right. She skipped into the room and headed straight to the mirror. "Why can't my hair just like me for once," Miley groaned as she tried to keep her curls in perfect shape.

"Miley," Demi warned, but her sister was ignoring her. "Hello," Demi snapped. She finally got Miley's attention as the brunette jumped up at the sound of Demi's annoyed voice. "Nick is going to perform and he will be fine. And he will think you're hot throughout the whole performance. So, just chill out. God," she huffed. Miley rolled her eyes and sighed as she looked into the mirror.

"You're right," she finally decided, earning a cheery smile from Demi. The two smiled at each other and linked arms as they made their way to Nick's dressing room.

* * *

Nick tossed on his hat and picked up his guitar to start tuning the instrument. Joe was lying down on the couch while he was flipping through the channels on the plasma. Both were concentrated in their own thoughts until they heard a Nick's name mentioned on the television set.

"And here you have it folks. Nick Lucas' promotion tour debuts tonight. Critics are saying his new CD is worth your money and your precious time. You do not want to miss his show; we're betting it will be on the hot tours list in no time," the MTV's anchor explained. She gave one last smile as the credits began rolling and the announcement was over.

"God, I can't believe this is all happening," Joe exclaimed. He grinned from ear to ear and looked at Nick's face for his reaction. "Come on man, you were on the fucking TV!" he hollered. Joe got up and walked towards his brother.

"I know. Everything is just so unbelievable right now," Nick replied. His head was in frenzy. It was something truly amazing when your name was mentioned on a popular television channel. "Almost too good to be true."

"And just to think. If I hadn't texted you that night that THE Miley and Demi Stewart walked into the bar, you would have never known Miley and this would have never happened. And the fact that she was immediately crushing on you made everything so much easier," Joe sighed. He had known who they were the moment they stepped into the bar.

"Yeah, that was a huge help," Nick weakly smiled. He looked down at his guitar and strummed a couple of chords.

"And then when you tipped of the paparazzi that night at the carnival. Genius. I mean I thought maybe other labels would have approached us but damn I didn't know Miley would go straight to Billy Ray," Joe went on and on and Nick uncomfortably shifted in his position. The guilt of this situation was eating away at him. It was true he had used Miley, but it wasn't completely like that. Right? Before Joe got another word in, the two heard a silent sob at the door. Nick lifted his head to see a brunette and a raven haired girl.

He could see the tears rolling down Miley's cheeks and he felt his own eyes tear up as he so her so broken.

"You used me?" Miley asked. Her head started to spin. She closed her eyes as she remembered the carnival. They went on a whim and the paparazzi found out where she was in a couple of seconds. She should have wondered something then. She opened her eyes again. The ten minutes Nick had gone to get her that stuffed animal flashed back into her mind. The fact that he accepted who she was so easily should have been a wake up call.

"It isn't what it looks like," Nick said, desperately trying to fix the situation. He looked up at Demi, hoping to find help. Unfortunately for him, Demi was bursting with anger. She walked up to him and gave him a brutal slap on the face. He couldn't think straight for a couple of seconds as the red mark burned on his cheek.

"She trusted you," she glared into Nick's eyes. Demi shook her head and snapped straight at Joe. Her eyes were marked with anger that was vibrating through the room. "You guys should be ashamed of yourselves," she gave one last remark. She took one last look at them and walked towards Miley. The poor girl was trying to hold back the overflow of tears. The tension of the room became too much and Miley made a quick decision.

She turned around and started to run. And just when she thought of looking back, Demi caught her hand and broke out into a full sprint. It was a good thing or else she would have crawled back to him with a tail in between her legs. Her tears were flowing freely now. Earlier that month she wondered if Nick was going to change. What she truly should have been worried about was if she knew him at all.

**A/N So yeah, the fact that Nick used her and knew who she was the whole time is the big twist in the story, haha. The Billy Ray abuse stuff is a side story that helps with the plot. I hope it wasn't too broken and that it was a confusing chapter, but yeah. I hope you don't hate me?**


	6. One and the Same

Miley leaped into the car and released all her tears as she hit the leather seat. The driver didn't need to ask what happened once he saw the girls' faces. The hurt and disappointment was apparent.

"Mi, please, talk to me," Demi begged after moments of utter silence. All they could hear was the screech of the tires as the car halted at the red lights. Miley shook her head. Her waves were tossed all over her face as she tried to hide all her emotions. She couldn't let Demi know how much she was hurting.

"Miley," Demi tried again. She squeezed Miley's arm, but her sister turned away. Miley watched the glossy window and stared at her reflection. She could see the tear stains on her soft cheeks and she could see Demi's faint reflection to the side of her. Demi's face was stricken with worry for her only sister. Miley caved in as the guilt of hiding from her sister consumed her.

"He hurt me, Dems. He really hurt me," she whimpered she laid her head down on Demi's lap and started to sob uncontrollably.

"I know, sweetie," Demi cooed. She ran her fingers through Miley's hair and leaned back into her seat, trying to think of the right things to say at the moment. "He's a jerk. He doesn't deserve you. You know that, right?" Miley's reply to Demi's question was pure silence. "Miley," Demi tugged Miley's arm so that she lifted her sister up. The brunette's blue eyes looked so lifeless. "He doesn't deserve you," Demi said with as much confidence that she could muster.

"I don't know…" Miley trailed. Her forehead creased as she thought about it. Nick was so talented and special. Miley didn't deserve him.

"Hey, he had to use you to get on top. He needed you. Not the other way around," Demi wrapped her arms around her best friend and squeezed tightly. She tried to transfer as much hope and confidence as she could into Miley. "I bet you. He's going to come begging for you to take him back."

"Demi," Miley choked as she caught hold of a new realization. "We had sex," she said silently, as though that one statement would make everything ten times worse. Demi's eyes gained volume as she stared at the brunette. Both gulped down the awkward silence in the car. Neither of them had anything to add to the statement.

"Miley," Demi whispered. If she had gotten any louder, her voice would have broke with sympathy. "Things happen," she said lamely. Giving advice to this sort of problem was hard.

"I know," Miley helped out. She would just have to get over this sort of thing by herself. She couldn't change the past or undo whatever she did.

"Just try and move on," Demi piped in. "He's not worth the thought. He's a complete idiot and he knows it." Miley nodded and slowly slipped into a light slumber. She was worn out from all the emotional drama she had encountered.

* * *

Miley eyes slowly lifted open, revealing her surroundings. She was curled up on Demi's bed and she could still feel the dry tear stains on her face from last night. She sighed and got up. She was still wearing yesterday's clothes and they were uncomfortable.

"Hey, good morning," Demi pranced into the room; she was already showered and dressed. Her smile almost made Miley's mood lighten up. Demi came around and sat next to her sister, leaning onto her shoulder. "We're going to do crazy things today," she announced. Miley raised her eyebrows causing Demi to fall into a fit of laughter. "You'll see," she said in between breaths. And with that, Miley got up and ran into the shower. Today was going to be an interesting day.

It took around an hour for the girls to get ready and fill up their stomachs. Miley ended up wearing a pair of denim shorts, a plain white t-shirt, and converse. Demi changed out of her clothes a couple of times and ended up copying Miley by the end, but with a black V neck t-shirt. The two gulped down their omelets and bounded out the door.

Right when their sneakers hit the pavement, the girls saw the paparazzi camped outside their gates, waiting to catch a glimpse of Billy Ray's broken hearted daughter.

"Do they know?" Miley's head went into frenzy. It happened last night and already the sleazes were ready to take a picture of her tear stained face.

"Yeah," Demi sighed. "Apparently an inside source leaked the information to E! yesterday. The media has been trying to get the exact details."

"Yeah, the inside source might be fame whore Nick Lucas," Miley hissed. They got into their car and started to back out the driveway. As soon as their tires hit the street, a swarm of lights began to attack the front window. "God," Miley leaned over and slammed the wheel, emitting a loud honk. The paps still didn't get the message. They started to shout questions that were muffled through the close doors. "Dammit," Miley cursed she leaned over and opened the window. "Get out of the fucking way," she yelled. Her cheeks were bright red with frustration.

Demi gave out another honk and started to move the car forward. Miley closed her eyes as Demi kept trying to move forward. Unfortunately for Miley, she forgot to close the window and she could hear what they were saying outside.

"Miley! What happened with your boyfriend? Did he cheat on you?" Question number one. "Miley, did he think you were too slutty for him?" That was her final straw. Her eyes flew open and she moved her foot into the driver's seat.

"What are you doing?" Demi shrieked when Miley's foot plunged into the gas pedal. The car sped straight through and everyone moved out of the way.

"It's like you have to do something drastic to get them to back the hell off," Miley vented. She turned around and watched the crowd of cameras disappear as Demi was driving off. She pounded her fists on the dashboard to get rid of her anger. "I'm finished with them."

"I was finished with them a long time ago," Demi huffed. She stepped on the acceleration pedal and picked up her speed.

"So, where are we going exactly?"

"It's called a surprise. You are the worst with surprises," Demi glared at her sister. Miley crossed her arms and laid back into her seat. She leaned forward a little bit and turned on the radio. She started to bounce her head when the beat of Bad Romance started to roam the car.

"I want your love, love, love. I want your love," Miley sang. Her voice was purely angelic and Demi never understood why Miley didn't pursue a musical career. "What?" Miley laughed for the first time in twenty four hours.

"You know when everything calms down, we should make a record," Demi turned the car onto a dirt road.

"Make a record? And where the hell are we going?" Miley asked as she caught sight of the rough road. She grabbed her seat as the car started jerking from the rocks.

"Just chill. And yeah, it would be fun," Demi reached over to her glove compartment and slipped on a pair of sunglasses. The car bounced up and down until Demi parked near a couple of bushes. She hopped out of the car and Miley copied her. Next to their parking spot was a pair of ATVs. One was a shade of dark red while the other one was black. The California sunshine bounced off of the paint and danced around the girls, creating a glare off of Demi's sunglasses.

"Holy shit," Miley gasped when she took in the cars. "We've never done this," she walked up to ATVs and ran her hand along them. "I call the black one," she yelped before Demi could choose their favorite color.

"Told you we're going to do crazy stuff today," Demi chuckled. She bounded towards the red one and hopped onto the seat. She gently made herself comfortable and waited for Miley to do the same. Once her sister buckled up, Demi started up her car and slowly tested out its power.

"Oh my god, I'm kind of scared," Miley shrieked. She followed Demi's trail. Once the two got the hang of it, both cars started to get a little reckless.

'Watch out," Demi yelped when she crossed over into a new trail. She looked behind her to see Miley leaning over to the side and speeding up her car. She was trying to surpass Demi. "Oh no you don't" Demi warned. She hit her acceleration again and started to fly off the road, bouncing up and down along the dirt road. Miley picked up her speed and caught up to Demi's back end.

"Yo, loser. Eat my dirt," Miley shouted. She pressed the acceleration pedal one more time and passed Demi, quickly shifting sides of the road to land in front of her sister. She whipped her head back and stuck out her tongue, causing Demi to send her an icy glare.

"Yeah, well…" Demi tried to move to the right side of the road, but Miley just mimicked her actions, thwarting any attempts Demi had of surpassing Miley. "You suck," she yelled. The girls laughed and started to twirl around in the ATVs. Miley took a sharp turn and went onto another trail, causing Demi to do the same.

"I'm going to try something so back up a little bit," Miley yelled over her shoulder. Demi nodded and decreased her speed for a little bit. Miley gripped her handle bar and leaned back. She pulled up the front end of the car and caused it to lift up. Her car was riding on the back two ends of her wheels until she slammed it down to all fours again. "That was kind of scary," Miley confessed. She took a sharp U turn and drove over to Demi.

"Okay, I think we should start heading back, Danger," Demi joked. She turned around her vehicle and the two started to ride side by side.

"So, I think I was in love with him," Miley sighed. Even with their day of unforgettable fun, she was still moping about Nick.

"Well, then find another guy," Demi tried to lighten up her mood. She pushed up her sunglasses so they were resting on the top of her head. She pursed her lips and looked over at her broken sister. Miley was slumped over on her ATV, her head in a totally different world.

"I don't think it's that easy. He was sweet and talented and plain amazing," Miley sighed. She ran her fingers through her tangled hair and looked up at the sun. It was a sunny day and yet she felt like the whole world was storming. She ignored the sunshine and saw dark clouds looming above her.

"That's what you thought he was. But he's nothing like that, Miley. Don't you ever think of him as a good guy. Because he's not. Mi, look at me," Demi snapped her fingers to get her companion's attention. Miley turned her head slightly and kept her wheel steady. "You need to be able to support yourself. I'm not going to be here all the time to tell you that guys don't deserve you," Demi peered at her. Miley rolled her eyes and tossed her head back to laugh.

"What are you talking about? You'll always be there," she laughed. She looked over at Demi who gave her an encouraging smile.

"Yeah, but what if something happens. I don't want you to mope over some stupid guy and end up being a total lamo," Demi looked at Miley silently. "You need to have the confidence to say screw you Nick. He isn't even worth your thoughts." Miley nodded in understanding. She needed to start standing up for herself without Demi's support.

* * *

Miley flipped through the channels on the television. There was nothing good to watch nowadays. It had been a good week since the Nick incident and she tried her hardest to keep it in the back of her mind. She flipped to the entertainment channel. It landed right in the middle of the daily news.

"Nick Lucas is having a pretty hot tour. Even after his messy breakup with his boss' daughter- Miley Ray Stewart. Inside sources have been saying that it was a mutual break up between the public icons. Nick, however, didn't let this personal issue stop him from headlining one sick promo tour. We're looking forward to his CD and of course magazine spreads that feature his amazing face," the gossip reporter winked at the camera. Miley threw and icy glare and a sarcastic smirk to the Barbie doll that was plastered all over her TV.

"Yeah, well. He's a jerk. You can totally have him," she lamely shot back at the TV. "Take that stupid reporter," Miley grumbled. She fixed her ponytail before shutting of the television and hopping towards Demi's room. She knocked on the door and entered after hearing Demi's faint mumbling.

"What's up sis?" Demi piped without looking up from her computer.

"Nothing, I was just bored of watching stupid news stuff," Miley absentmindedly grumbled. Demi looked up, her eyebrows arched with curiosity. "They were doing a special on Nick and they talked about our break up." Miley looked around the room awkwardly and finally landed her eyes back on the computer. "What are _you_ doing anyways?" she asked as she caught a glimpse of some curly haired head on the page Demi had opened.

"Nothing," Demi replied quickly, shutting her laptop. "It's seriously _nothing_ important," she emphasized. Miley rolled her eyes and snatched the computer away. She slowly opened it up and reopened the page Demi was reading.

"Nick Lucas' concert pictures," Miley rolled her eyes and looked at Demi. "Really?" she glared at her sister.

"I told you it was nothing important," Demi retorted. "I was just checking up on the daily gossip and this was his Fresno concert."

"Whatever," Miley dryly replied. She set the computer back down on Demi's desk and was about to open her mouth but Demi interrupted her.

"Honestly, he's talented. But he's a jerk. I was just checking if he's a mess without you. And I concluded he is," Demi said carefully. She didn't know where she was going with this conversation but hopefully Miley would just play along and act like she understood Demi.

"Mess. How so?" Miley looked at Demi with curiosity.

"Um, he looks so…" she had to think of something fast. She did a double take on the pictures and smiled up at Miley. "Unattractive. I think he's lost his hotness value since your break up," she smirked. "Plus, he's all sweaty and disgusting. So. Not. Hot." Miley rolled her eyes.

"Yes, because all the girls swooning over him think the _same_ exact thing," her voiced was laced with sarcasm. The two girls started to giggle until they heard a doorbell ring through the mansion.

"I'll get that," they both said at the same time. Demi gave her an evil grin and bounded out of the door with Miley hot on her trail. The girls trampled down the stairs, giggling at their own actions. Miley leaped towards the doorknob with her long legs, beating Demi by a whole entire centimeter. She whipped her tongue out and playfully teased her sister.

"I win," Miley snorted out through her laughter. She turned the knob and opened the door to get a view of the mystery person.

"Oh, my god, you're alive," Demi gasped as she lunged toward the girl who was standing on the Stewarts' porch. Standing in front of the two girls was a petite blonde. She flashed them both her gorgeous smile and stepped in.

"It's so good to see you again," Miley genuinely smiled and gave the unexpected visitor a tight hug. The three enjoyed each other's company, completely oblivious to the drama that was about to encompass their lives. It was going to be a whirlwind of events from here on out.

**A/N Guess who the mystery person is? =P Haha, so technically that's the cliffhanger for this chapter. And I put a hint in here about whats going to happen in around two chapters. I hope you guys liked this update. I know its a filler but I kind of wanted to expand on Memi and their friendship a little bit before the story started up again. I hope it wasn't too boring, haha**


	7. Momma Do

"Oh, god. The last time I saw you was my Dad's UK leg of his Back to Tennessee tour. Miss Pixie Lott, you have grown into a rising musician," Miley grinned at her blonde bombshell of a friend. She wrapped her arms around the girl again and gave her one last squeeze before dragging her into the leaving room. The three girls plopped onto the couch and mischievously grinned at each other.

"Oh, yeah," Demi recounted. "We had so much fun in London," she giggled. "Especially when we went to that club in France," the three girls through their heads back in laughter. "We started in London at like two in the afternoon. And then took a ferry to France and back, making it back to hotel at like six in the morning. Dad's manager was pissed."

"Don't forget the loads of pictures that followed. We were on every European magazine for weeks," Miley groaned as she remembered her dad's management team's endless lectures. "The management team wouldn't leave us alone. We had bodyguards following us everywhere when we came back to LA." The girls nodded their heads and had reminiscent smiles plastered on their faces.

"So," Pixie beamed. Her one word was already dripping with her British accent. "What kind of other wicked things have you two been up to," she pointed her finger at the sisters with her eyebrows arched up in curiosity. Miley shrugged; she did not want to go into detail of her messy break up.

"Nothing as exciting as adventures with Pixie Lott on the streets of London. Well, Victoria Lott. But you get the point." Pixie rolled her eyes at this point. "We rode ATVs the other day," Demi shrieked after remembering their little escapade from the weekend. "It was completely fun. It would have been so cool if you were there too!" Her hands were flying in the air as she recounted their dirt road adventures. She went into complete detail, holding Pixie's attention but leaving behind sleepy Miley. "Yeah, it was pretty cool. I think we'll try sky diving soo," Demi concluded, waking Miley out of her thoughts.

"What?" Miley's eyes bulged out and Demi nudged her side. Miley gave her sister a playful glare when she caught on.

"Joking, sis," Demi winked at her sister. Pixie chuckled at her friends' behavior before getting up and wandering around the room, trying to take in all the pictures that were neatly lined up on the banister.

"You know what I just realized. This is the first time I've seen your house," she thought out loud. She grabbed a picture of Demi and Miley as six year olds. They were hugging each other in front of Disneyland's opening gate. "This is adorable," she giggled. Demi made her way over to where she was standing and tippy toed to get a good look of the photo.

"Yeah, our mom took the picture," Demi weakly smiled. Pixie gave a quick nod and placed the picture back in its rightful place. She clapped her hands and dragged Demi back to the couch.

"So, we have to plan something while I'm here. Clubbing?" She looked at Miley, who had been surprisingly quiet this whole time. "Come on, smiley Miley. We better have a bloody wicked time while I'm here."

"Alright. Sorry, I'm being a downer," Miley smiled. Her blue eyes seemed to be sort of empty for a moment before lighting up once again. "Why don't we go to the new movie premier?" She raced to the dining table to pick up an invitation and landed back near Demi. She waved it in the air and beamed at the two.

"What movie?" Demi leaned over to grab the invite. She took in the worlds and gasped in surprise. "Valentine's Day? Me and Bradley Cooper. So there."

"Yeah, I thought you might like that," Miley chuckled and looked over for Pixie's approval. "What about you, Victoria?" she said, using Pixie's full name. The blonde smirked up at the two to stand up and place her hand on her hips.

"Of course. It wouldn't be a party without me." She leaned in against the two and smiled as she read the invite for the first time. "It's in one week. That's perfect," she winked at her friends and the three immersed themselves into random conversations.

* * *

It had been two days since Pixie Lott had come to visit. Demi and the British singer were rampaging Rodeo Drive and practically emptying out every shop they set foot in.

"Do you think this looks good?" the blonde signaled the raven haired girl to get a good look of the black mini she was trying out. She flipped her hair out of her eyes and strutted over towards the mirror. She peered into the magical glass and tried to decide whether she liked the outfit or not. "I think it looks okay. Not exactly uncommon, though." She pulled down her dress to get the wrinkles out and tilted her head once again to make a final decision.

"I feel like everyone owns a black mini these days," Demi placed her hands on her hips as she offered her own opinion on the dress dilemma. "It looks really cute on you, but you would look amazing in whatever so go for something a little bit more daring."Her companion nodded in agreement and dashed over towards the racks.

"So why didn't Miley tag along?" she asked as she was looking through the dresses. She stopped every once in awhile and squinted as she was thinking about how the dress would look on her body. She raised her head again to hear Demi's explanation. The girl just shrugged. "Oh, come on. I know there's something wrong. Just tell me," she pushed. She walked over to Demi and pulled out her best puppy dog eyes. Demi rolled her eyes and finally caved in.

"She just went through a messy break up. Like really bad," Demi bit her lip as she remembered what happened with Nick. "The guy was a total arse…in your words."

"Who on earth would be the bloody bastard that breaks Miley Ray's heart," annoyance was high in her voice. She rolled her eyes and muttered a couple of words under her breath and Demi chuckled.

"She's alright. She just doesn't want the media following her around," Demi gave a pointed look at the paparazzi that was camped outside of the store.

"Oh," Pixie turned her head and shook her head with irritation. "They should just leave us alone. Whatever. Comes with the territory, I guess." It took her a moment before she collected her thoughts again. "Speaking of guys. I was wondering if you wanted to double date tonight," she arched her eyebrows a couple of times to further emphasize her question.

"Why does everyone want me to date?" Demi through her hands up in the air. She gave Pixie an incredulous look and simultaneously stopped searching for dresses.

"Not in that way," Pixie defended herself. "White flag. But seriously, I met this cute guy yesterday and he asked me out. He has a brother so I was wondering if you would like to come along," she gave a small smile and waited patiently as Demi contemplated. "Please, mate. It would seriously help me out," she used a sing song voice to push Demi over the edge.

"Okay, fine," Demi huffed. "I guess we need to get dresses for the date and the premier now, huh?"

"Yup," Pixie clapped, cheerily and rushed over to the nearest racks. "You would look so cute in this," she gushed. It was a dark blue halter top that had silver sequin flowers near the bottom hem. She took the dress off the rail and handed it over.

"More like you would look amazing in it. Blue isn't my color," Demi handed the dress back and looked towards the dressing room. "Go try it on," she demanded and gave her friend a small smirk before pushing her into the changing rooms.

"Fine." After a couple of minutes, Pixie emerged from the room. She was wrapped around in the dark shade of blue and it completely complimented her skin color. She gave a shy smile, something completely out of character as she walked towards the mirror again. The dresses ended inches above her knees and showed off her legs. "I think I like it," she finally decided. She twirled around to get Demi's opinion, only to find her friend smirking at her with a satisfied look.

"Told you so," Demi laughed and went back to looking for her own dress. She finally settled on a metallic, silver color. It was a strapless, bubble dress that would end a couple of inches above her knees. There was a net over the bottom half of the dress that had a flower design on in. She already had the perfect pair of shoes that would match it. She looked at it one last time and decided to dash over to the fitting room. After pulling it on, she mimicked Pixie's previous actions and looked for her companion.

"It looks amazing," Pixie gushed. She dragged Demi over to the mirror to show her what she was talking about. "The design is so cute," Pixie pointed towards the bottom of the dress. Demi looked down and nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, and my shoes are silver with those puffy flowers on them so it would be the perfect thing." Demi looked around the store and tried to scout for a dress for the premier. "Why don't we just call it a day? We'll ask my Dad's style team to get us a couple of dresses for the movie," she offered. They were completely exhausted from the whole day of shopping. Her friend, fortunately, nodded and they both pulled out their Visas to pay for their dresses

* * *

Demi pulled her hair back into a pony tail. She clipped on the clip and left a few free strands to frame her face. She reached for her lipstick and placed the bright red across her lips. She had always loved to go full out with her makeup. Now, eye shadow. She smiled as she placed her fingers on the black and darkened up her eyes a little bit.

"Sexy," Miley piped up from behind her. Demi jumped from the surprise and turned around to face her sister. She stuck out her tongue, forcing Miley to do the same. "So, hot date tonight?" Miley teased.

"Pixie wouldn't tell me anything about the guy. She was like if I tell you too many details you're going to fuss over it and change your mind," Demi huffed. She reached over for her eyeliner and started to apply it on.

"Good thing. Whenever I tell you what we're having for breakfast, you always change your mind," Miley shot back. She leaned back on the bed and enjoyed her comfy sweat pants as she took in Demi's elegant dress. "Can you breathe in that thing?"

"Yes, I can," Dem retorted. She shifted her position and placed down her make up to walk towards the bed. "Are you going to be okay here by yourself?" She was genuinely concerned for her sister's well being. She knew Miley wasn't fully over the whole Nick thing just yet and she didn't want her to wallow in her own misery.

"Demi I'm going to be fine," she whined back. She tossed her hair back and landed with a thump on the bed. "I'm probably just going to watch some TV and then call it a night," she tilted her head to look at her sister's face. Demi nodded and yawned. She would have leaned back but her hair would have gotten messed up. They faintly heard the doorbell and Miley nodded towards Demi. "Looks like your ride is here," she smiled.

"If anything happens just give me a call," Demi offered. She gave her a light kiss on her forehead and headed downstairs. For some reason, she couldn't shake the feeling that something was going to go wrong tonight. She could feel it. There was drama, but she couldn't imagine what it would be. Whatever it was, Demi tried to shake her thoughts when she opened the door for Pixie.

"Ready for a wicked time," Pixie flashed her pearly whites. She grinned at Demi's dress. "You pulled off the ensemble perfectly, mate." Demi's eyes wandered over to Pixie's dress and she smirked back.

"What would your Momma do if she saw you wearing that," Demi giggled at her own joke. Pixie rolled her eyes at the song reference and pulled Demi out.

"Very funny, Demetria. What would your Daddy say about _your_ dress?" Pixie immediately shot back. She took out her key and unlocked the car door.

"He wouldn't notice," Demi muttered her breath. She looked for a quick change in subject. "Rental?" she asked as she got into the car. Pixie gave her a short nod and started up the engine. "So what's the guy like?" Demi asked out of curiosity. She didn't want to go into this date completely blind.

"To be honest," Pixie giggled. She reached for the stereo to avoid the question, but Demi grabbed her hand and glared at her. Pixie bit her lip and focused her attention towards the road. "Well, I haven't seen his brother…" she trailed. She looked over to Demi who was currently in the middle of a minor freak-out.

"You haven't seen the guy I'm supposedly going on a date with?" Demi asked. She flared her arms up and started to take heavy breaths. "What if he's like some psycho killer or something?" she looked at Pixie. "Huh?"

"Now, you're over exaggerating," she looked at Demi who was rolling her eyes. "Mate, you're going on a date. Which, may I point out; you haven't had one in awhile." Demi scoffed at that statement and crossed her arms. "Demi."

"Pixie," Demi tried to keep a straight face when she looked over at her friend, but she failed miserably. Both of them started to laugh as they made their way through the streets of LA. Finally, they started to reach a level of calm and Demi was trying to suppress her laughter. "Why can't I ever be mad at you?" she asked. Pixie tossed her an innocent look and Demi gave her a light chuckle. "So how is your date?"

A light blush was rising in Pixie's cheek. She turned onto the next street and maintained silence, hoping Demi would change the subject.

"Hello, the question ain't gonna go away, missy," Demi tried again.

"He's cute and he's funny. You'll meet him," Pixie finally spoke out once she turned into the parking lot of the restaurant and jumped out of the car. "I really like him," she told Demi as the two started walking toward the building.

"Where'd you meet him?" Demi asked. She took a final look at her outfit as the two were closing in on the restaurant.

"At the studio." Demi's ears perked up and she turned towards her friend. This guy worked at the studio?

"Which studio?" Demi pronounced. They had stopped right in front of the door now.

"Your dad's. I swung by to visit your dad and I met the guy in the lobby." Demi's forehead creased as she silently nodded and reached towards the handle of the door. She let Pixie go in first and stepped into the restaurant. The lady pointed towards a table that was placed in the back corner. Demi looked right at the table to find two figures reading the menus. There was something completely off by the picture. As she was nearing the table, she caught sight of a curly head and her stomach dropped. It couldn't be.

**A/N So, yeah, I know this wasn't the best chapter because it was all filler, but the ending is supposed to be the drama set up for the next chapter where everything sort of just explodes. Demi is the main character for the next chapter. The ATV ride is important and yeah....haha. Gah, I'm so tired. Again, sorry, if this update sucked but the next three chapters will be filled with drama. couple of hints. Nick is in all of them. Miley gets drunk. Something happens to Demi. And Billy Ray and Miley get into a huge thing. Okay. SO, that's a lot to look forward to. huh?**


	8. Where'd You Go?

Demi closed her eyes. She counted to three, hoping that the image she supposedly saw would just disappear. Unfortunately for her, two familiar boys were still sitting right in front of her. Their heads rose to get a good look at the figure standing above them. Nick's eyes fluttered quickly as he tried to regain his composure. Everything stood still in a moment of silence until Demi finally decided to do something.

"You," she pointed her finger at him. Nick's brown orbs widened as he absorbed Demi's death glare. He did not know what to expect. "Outside. Now," she spat. She looked over at Pixie who was utterly confused at this point. Joe shrunk back into his chair and started to play with his paper napkin.

The two weaved through the countless number of tables and finally stepped out of the restaurant into the ice cold weather. Nick felt the sudden change of atmosphere and stiffened up.

"You had no right to do that to her," Demi shook her head. She placed her hands on her hips and spat out venom in every inch of her words. "She really trusted you. You scumbag." At this point, all of Demi's emotional anger turned physical as she pushed Nick.

"Demi," Nick stuttered; he held is hands up in the air as a form of surrender, but it didn't seem to faze her.

"You hurt her," Demi squinted her eyes at him. She could feel his expression soften up a bit. This was a perfect opening. She raised her hand and left a scorching mark on his right cheek.

"Demi," Nick gasped as he took in the pain. He winced as the burning spread across his cheek. "I didn't mean to," he protested. He looked up at her but another hand flew at his other cheek. Nick stumbled backwards from the impact and gasped for breath. "I swear I didn't mean to hurt her."

"Really? Is that why she's such a fucking mess right now? Can you please heal her broken heart?" He stayed silent for a moment and Demi shook her head in disgust. She stomped her foot down and blinked, trying to hold back further anger. "You are pathetic. I want you to get the hell out of LA. If I_ ever_ see you in this city again, I swear- I swear you don't even want to know what's going to happen to you." She gave him one last dirty look and started to head towards the restaurant door.

"I'm not going anywhere-"Nick was cut off as Demi spun around sharply. She raised her eyebrows in surprise. She was about to open her mouth, but Nick continued on. "Do you know how much it would hurt to never see your sister again? Do you know how much it hurts that I really hurt her?" Demi's expression turned incredulous as she took in Nick's words.

"You're hurt?" she said in disbelief. She felt as though she could slap him again. Her hand was starting to lift up again, but Nick stepped a couple feet back for protection.

"You _never_ listened to my side of the story," he fought back. He had the desperate need to tell Demi everything that had happened since he met Miley. Demi looked at her opponent and stayed solemnly quiet- she needed to her his excuse. After all, she had a nagging voice in her head that kept telling her that he really was a great guy.

"It started out that way, yes. But our first date- all of that was real. I did tip off the paps, but as soon as I did it, I regretted it. I promise, after that night I never did that sort of thing again. There's something beautifully amazing about your sister," Nick caught his words and closed his eyes as his memories started to invade him. "You don't know how much I love her and I would-"Nick was about to finish his confession, but he was cut off by Demi's gasp.

"You love her?" she looked at him. His body suddenly relaxed and he looked so vulnerable. He bent his head down and looked at the gray cement. "How can I believe you?" she whispered. And that's when she saw the glossy, beady drops of water making their way down his cheek. He shut his eyes. He was crying. His emotions were all out in the open and Demi saw every ounce of pain that was visible on his pale face. For the first time that night, she saw how weary his eyes looked. They were plagued with dark circles. His usually vibrant, brown irises were now dull with hurt.

"Yeah, I love her," he choked out. He turned towards the brick wall and pounded his fists. "I can't believe I messed this up," he tried to hold back his tears. Demi's heart dropped at the scene. She saw his tattered form and something within her changed. She felt the need to believe him. She felt the need to console him in all his misery.

"Nick," she tugged his sleeve. He looked towards her and she sighed. "You really love her, huh?" she asked. In return, she got a silent nod.

"Please, tell her for me?" Nick pleaded. His eyes looked so desperate.

"I can't Nick. You need to fix this yourself," Demi slightly shook her head. She wanted to help him, but what could she do? Nothing she would say would make Miley take him back. Miley needed to realize on her own that Nick truly did care about her. Nick's face fell in disappointment. "Hey," she cooed. "You'll find a way to show her you love her. If there's a will, there's a way."

"I really miss her," he whimpered. "I didn't want to go out on this date," Nick said absentmindedly. He looked towards the street and sighed. "Joe didn't want me to mope around the apartment." An awkward silenced settled in between the two.

"Hey, Nick," Demi choked out. Nick looked up at her. "You'll always look out for her, right?" she asked. Her voice was quivering and Nick nodded his head urgently. "Good, because she'll need you soon." And with that Demi walked back into the restaurant to get Pixie.

* * *

Demi tossed her hair to the back and straightened out her mini. She took a final look at her strappy shoes and turned towards her sister.

"You ready to rock it out tonight?" she teased her little sister. Miley gave her a soft smile and let out a giggle.

"Girl, you know how I do," she flipped her hand in the air and landed it back on her left hip. She laughed off the light moment and stepped towards her mirror, applying any finishing touches.

"Pix, you good in there," Demi yelled over her shoulder. I muffled reply came from the bathroom and Demi rolled her eyes. "We're going to leave without you." She heard a small yelp and suddenly the bathroom door swung open, revealing their blonde friend draped in a hot pink dress.

"Oo, la, la," Miley teased. She ran a free hand through her curly hair and walked towards the door. Pixie gave her a quick glare, but she laughed it off. "Finish your make up and I'll get the car ready," she informed.

Once the brunette was out of the room, Pixie threw her hands up in the air and sighed.

"Did you tell her?" she asked Demi. Demi's eyes wandered towards the dresser and ignored her friend's urgent question. "Demi?" she shrieked.

"What do you want me to tell her?" Demi snapped back. She rolled her eyes and grabbed her black purse from the bed.

"I don't know. The fact that we had dinner with her apparent ex-boyfriend." Demi had told Pixie the whole soap opera like plot on the car ride back home. It was the least she could do once she ruined Pixie's date.

"Pix, you know she won't handle that well."

"Please, you aren't giving her enough credit," she glared back. It was hard keeping a secret from Miley- especially when the girl was going through apparent misery.

"Nick needs to do this by himself," Demi explained. Her opponent sighed in defeat and started to head out the door. Demi trailed behind silently and the two made their way downstairs. They reached the car and hopped inside to find Miley talking to the driver.

"Hey, guys!" Miley bubbled. She reached over and closed the door. "Tonight is going to be a blast."

"Don't get too excited, Mi," Demi winked. Miley rolled her eyes in return and sat back comfortably. Before the girls knew it, the car parked itself before the red carpet. Pixie was the first one out of the car to greet the crowd of cameras. Miley followed and then Demi came after.

Miley was the first to get hounded by personal questions once they stopped for short interviews. She patiently answered the Nick questions and tried to shrug off anything that was getting to her. She was on her last stretch of interviews. She turned to look around for Demi, who was preoccupied with an interview of her own.

That was the most tiring thing about these movie premiers- meeting all the reporters. She walked towards Demi and linked arms, tuning into the conversation.

"So Demi, I love your dress. Who's the designer?" the unknown reporter gushed. She gave Demi a bright smile and flashed her pearly whites.

"Max Azria," she replied politely. She leaned onto Miley's shoulder and nudged her sister's side, a plea for help.

"We got to go," Miley lamely offered. Demi stiffened up and was about ready to leave the platform until the reporter blocked them one last time.

"Wait one question. Our channel is dying to know," the girl gave Demi a mischievous smile. The girls nodded their heads and the reporter continued on with her interview. "So did you break up with Nick because he was cheating on Demi?" The question was obviously directed at Miley. Demi's eyes widened in realization and her body stumbled a couple of inches back.

"What?" Miley gasped. "No, that's not why we broke up," she spat. She turned around to see a pale faced Demi.

"Look, I don't know what you guys know," Demi retaliated. Miley held her breath as she waited for Demi's explanation. "But that was a blind date," she responded. She mouthed a sorry to Miley and grabbed her sister's hand before sprinting into the theater.

"What happened?" Miley hissed once they closed the doors. Demi paced back and forth, trying to figure out the exact way to phrase the next sentence.

"Pixie's blind date was Nick. I swear I didn't know," Demi pleaded for Miley's attention. She saw her sister's face contort in pain as she processed the story. "Miley, I left as soon as I found out." She was about to add to that sentence, but it was best not to.

"I know you didn't mean it. The fact that you didn't tell me hurts."

"Mi, I swear I will never keep anything from you again," as soon as those words spilled out Demi gulped. She knew she couldn't hold that promise for long. Too many things were happening in their lives.

"You promise?" Miley meekly asked. She looked so soft and broken like a child whose innocence was lost.

"Yeah," Demi whispered. She gave her sister a hug and they embraced each other's warmth. Demi closed her eyes. She was in way too in over her head with all these lies. They would end soon, though. Miley was the first to pull away from the hug and she rushed through the doors into the public screening area.

As soon as she stepped out, her body slammed into a familiar form. She gasped for breath and looked up to see the face that had inconveniently toppled her over. Her eyes met a pair of brown circles. Her forehead creased and she immediately got up.

"Miley," he whispered. He reached out to her but she winced away. Demi finally came out of the private room and interrupted the awkward scene.

"Nick," Demi cleared her throat, allowing Miley to escape. Nick looked at Miley's retreating figure with disappointment.

"She isn't even talking to me?" Nick asked. His voice was so soft and delicate. Demi shook her head silently and rushed to Miley's side. She didn't tell Miley what else happened the other night and she didn't plan to. Nick had to fix this by himself. He had to show her he loved her.

"That was so awkward," Miley breathed. She stuffed her hand into her purse and searched for some lip gloss. "Hopefully, that doesn't happen again," she murmured. She glossed her lips and stuck her tube back into her black purse. Little did she know, that was the first of many Nick related occurrences she was going to have.

* * *

Miley flipped through her book and leaned into her arm chair. She shivered from the cold and curled up into a ball. It was late at night and she couldn't go to sleep. She heard her father's drunken murmurs from downstairs. It wouldn't be that much longer until he staggered into her room, looking for an outlet to his pent up frustration. She sighed.

The minutes passed by slowly and her eyes were drifting up. She was suddenly woken up as she heard heavy footsteps slam across the hallway floor. She whimpered. Demi's door squeaked open and she heard her father grunting. The door slammed shut and Miley's ears perked up to be able to hear well. All of a sudden her door flew open and Billy Ray tumbled in.

"Where is she?" he slurred. He swayed from side to side and clutched the bottle in his hands. Miley eyes widened- what was he talking about? Demi was in her room the last time Miley had seen her. "Where is she?" his voice gained volume. Miley shrunk back as he trudged toward her. She whimpered as his hand pounded her side.

"Daddy, please?" Miley cried as she winced in pain. She could feel the tears break out from her eyes. He slumped back and swayed around. She could see his face contort in pain as he started to lose his consciousness. He grabbed a hold of the wall and made his way towards the hallway. His eyes were sliding shut and he collapsed.

Miley's breathing started to slow down. She gasped in pain as she started lifting herself up. Her whole side was already sore and she could feel her skin burn. She closed her eyes, trying to block out the pain and walked to Demi's room. She opened the door to find an empty room. She saw a couple of drawers wide open and completely empty.

Miley's head was spinning in circles as she processed the image of Demi's room. It looked almost deserted. Her eyes finally landed on a notepad that was neatly laid on her sister's desk. Nothing was making sense to the brunette. She couldn't think clearly as she stepped closer to her sister's desk. She took a hold of the notebook and scanned the messy handwriting. She could feel her tears build up.

Miley read each word slowly to make sure her mind wasn't playing tricks on her. No matter how many times she read the damn thing, it had the same damn content.

_Dear Miley, I can't go on like this. I have to leave. I hope you , Demi_

And just like that, Miley's feeble world came crashing down. Her sister left her. The one person she could count on left her. She had no one.

**a/N So yeah, the big thing with Demi was that she was going to run away. Re read the ATV chapter, I put a hint in there and I put so many in the beginning of the chapter. I didn't want to make it seem so abrupt, but she has been thinking about this for a long time. I hope you liked this chapter, I think its my favorite so far. I think. Haha. But yeah. This is just a minor subplot and will play an important role later on. These next two chapters will be a blast to write. So the next two events coming up are that Miley gets drunk and Miley and Billy Ray have a huge fight. **


	9. Love Drunk

Miley opened her heavy eyes to the dark room around her. The dim light was trying to peek through the shades that covered up her window, but she was too lazy to let the sun to even try to brighten up her day. After all, her sister was gone. She didn't believe in light. She propped up herself- she had to start her day sometime.

"Breathe, Miley. This will all be over soon," she tried to soothe herself. Her hand let go of the crumple piece of paper that she was hanging onto all night. She had to let go. Demi was gone to handle her problems by herself and Miley just had to do the same. She sighed.

She walked towards her shower and slipped out of her pajamas and let the cold water hit her skin. She purged herself of the past. Today, she was going to do anything she can to get the stench of her past out of her. She was going to forget Nick. She was going to forget everything.

Miley quickly slapped on a pair of shorts and band tee before going to the mirror and wrapping her hair into a messy bun.

"Where are my car keys," she mumbled to herself, shuffling through her dresser, searching for the metal object. She stood still and closed her eyes, trying to remember exactly where she placed them. She replayed the memory from last night and muttered one last thing to herself. "Shit." She left them in Demi's room.

"So much for forgetting everything," she sighed. She quickly slipped into the room, careful no to look around, and grabbed her keys. She quickly high tailed it back to her room and grabbed her guitar. That was the one thing she ran to when her life was spinning out of control- her guitar.

It took her a couple minutes to reach her car as she skillfully dodged the paparazzi's watchful eyes. She turned on her engine and blasted the radio in order to block out everything. She pulled into the supermarket and jumped out. The cameras were already stationed in their usual spots, causing Miley to roll her eyes. How did they even know where she was going to go before she did? She pulled on her aviators and strolled in.

She came here with a decision in mind and she was going to fulfill it. Her hand reached for the bottle in the back fridges. She was careful to grab other items to make everything look less suspicious. Her feet made it towards the counter and she slapped the cash down, looking over her shoulder to see that the paparazzi didn't get any shots of this. The cashier nodded at her and she took off towards the car.

Her body slipped in easily and she started to make her way towards the studio. She needed to clear her head and write some music. And maybe even record something if she had enough time. She mindlessly entered the studio and walked up into her regular space.

There was an extra couch for to get comfortable in. She placed her goody on the coffee table and placed her guitar on her lap.

"Every line I write, I get to drink you," she giggled at the bottle, clearly entertained with her own joke. She strummed a couple of chords and picked her favorites with the A minor key She grabbed her sheet music and wrote in her music. She thought back to her childhood. She thought back to her mother. And she wrote.

"You tucked me in, turned out the light," she whispered. Her pencil scribbled in her messy handwriting.

"You did it all alone. Made a living. Made a home," her voice started to crack when she put in the melody. And tears spilled. Her mind wandered back to the first days her father had grabbed the bottle and had forgotten his family Didn't even think to see what would happen to them.

She grabbed a hold of the bottle and chugged in one gulp. From the contact of the liquid, she felt her head slow down and the world was inching by slower than it had before. Her vision slurred into blurriness and she blinked away, getting back to her music.

"You were always there when I looked back," Miley slurred. She inserted the words into the second verse and steadied herself before grabbing the bottle again. This time she took a bigger gulp and waited as her brain calmed itself down.

"Why are you doing this to yourself, Miley," she chided, crumpling her brunette locks in her fists. Her heart started slowing down and she could feel every inch of her body being drained out of energy. She felt the dizziness explore her body and it finally felt good. She was forgetting. She grabbed her guitar and messily went through the music, trying to stick to the melody she intended to write. But the alcohol was getting to her and it dragged her voice down.

She messed u the rhythm, but she got the music down. It took her a couple more moments to pen the full song down. It amazed her that music came even more easily when she was completely drunk. It was something built into her veins. It was the only thing that made her think that she was her father's daughter.

It took her a moment before she realized that the door to her left was being inched open. Her eyes caught brown shoes that peeked their way into the studio and a curly mop of hair made its appearance. She hadn't seen him in awhile and the sight of him made her even more intoxicated than she already was.

"What are you doing here," she slurred. Her body lifted up and she tumbled towards him, catching him completely off guard. They both tumbled on the floor and their lips scraped against each other as the scrounged to get up.

"Sorry," he mumbled. "I didn't think anyone was using this room." His nose scrunched up once he smelled the alcohol. "Have you been drinking?" He looked straight into her ocean blue byes, searching for the truth.

"Maybe," she gave a childish grin. She skipped to the couch and gripped the bottle to swing it over her head. "Hears to forgetting the past and having fun," she shouted, giving out a loud shriek. Nick winced at the sudden noise and chuckled from her behavior. Normal Miley was this hyper, but normal Miley wasn't this forgiving.

"I've never seen you drunk," he commented, moving over into the couch to be able to get a good look at her playful nature.

"No, I've never seen you drunk," Miley countered. She leaned in to him and touched their noses before giggling obnoxiously. "Take a sip," she ordered, slamming the bottle inches away from his face. He roared with laughter and grabbed it, take a small sip. "No, a bigger one," she pushed the bottle and titled more alcohol into his mouth. He smiled at her after gulping it down. He knew she should be mad at him and she would be under normal conditions, but he missed her. How bad could be if he just took advantage of this moment and just be with her?

"Guess what?" he whispered into her ear, sending shivers down her spine.

"What?" Her eyes grew wider, showing off her innocence. Nick chuckled at her facial expression. He leaned into her and let his arms settle on her side.

"This," he whispered before letting his hands tickled her waist. She shrieked once she felt the tingles all over her sides. She whipped her hair back and rolled over with laughter. He was now hovering above her as she started gasping for air.

"Nick, stop," she breathed, her face was lit with happiness. Something that hadn't been there in awhile. She felt like the alcohol gave her a disguise and she was finally free just for one night. "It tickles!!!!" she yelped.

"That's the point," he laughed. He let her tumble over a couple more times until he finally surrendered. They both leaned back gasping for large intakes of air to settle down their bodies.

"That was totally uncalled for," she huffed, blowing her bangs off her eyes and crossing her arms. Nick shook his head and leaned in for another sip of the bottle. He gulped down as much as he could before tearing the bottle away from his lips and smearing of the liquid that was left over.

"It was totally called for," he leaned in closer to her and settled his head down on her lap, letting the silence engulf them. "Sorry," he whispered.

"For tickling me?" Miley scrunched up her nose, clearly confused by his apology. She was in no state to really think about what he was saying so he let it go.

"Never mind," he chuckled. He ran his hands through his hair and let himself just sleep on her lap. "You smell like Strawberries," he pondered. She flipped her hair over and sniffed it before giggling.

"I think its my shampoooooooo," she dragged out the words, gradually losing her grip on reality. She fisted his hair and leaned in getting a good whiff. "You smell like Nick." She burst out into laughter, amused by her own carelessness at the moment.

"So I don't smell like Joe?" Nick retorted back sarcastically. Miley howled in giggles and shook her head, tossing her from shoulder the shoulder.

"No, silly," she ruffled his curls as he started to prop himself up with one hand. He gazed into her eyes and looked away, his eyes landing on the pile of papers on the coffee table.

"I never knew you wrote?" Nick asked as he started to sober up a little bit. He grabbed the sheet music and mentally started the music up in his head. "Sing it," he shoved the papers in front of her.

"No," Miley shook her head, letting her childish attitude take its prominence. "No way."

"Please?" he begged. He inched closer to her and dropped his eyes, letting his puppy dog face convince her.

"Okay..." she trailed. She readied herself up and tried to sober herself up enough to get her voice steady. She started and Nick was fully engrossed with her voice. He had never heard her sing before and it felt purely magical. He saw as she lost herself in her music and he automatically saw the similarities between them. She ended it on a perfectly steady note and Nick nodded with encouragement.

"That was wow...." he couldn't explain the beauty of it to her. He saw the crimson in her cheeks built up as she turned away. She grabbed the bottle and gulped down the last remaining alcohol, sending her back into a spiral of confusion.

"Thanks," she slurred for the nth time that night. She stood up and paced around the room before coming back to the stop where she was before. "You know what I want to do?" she asked.

"What?"

"I don't know," she paused for a moment, trying to remember what exactly she was going to do. The light bulb dinged off in her head and her eyes lit up. "This," she yelped, slamming her lips on his. Nick tumbled down from the force of contact. He was now lying on the catch with her scrambled on top of him.

"Miley-" he was cut off again as her lips added pressure to his. His intoxication levels rose as he felt her body press onto his. He hadn't felt her like this in a long time and it finally felt right again.

"Don't talk," she demanded. She propped him up and straddled him, taking control over the situation. He gulped in his words and gave into her demands, feeling every inch of passion that they didn't have the chance to show each other before. She felt his arms around her waist and she melted into him. They were both drunk, but only Nick was the one who was thing.

"Mi, maybe we shouldn't," he started, but her pleading eyes made him pause. She nibbled on his neck and he groaned as she met his weak spot. He flipped her over and swiped his tongue across her lips. She parted them and he entered. Their tongues tossed and turned meeting each other and exploring every inch of their mouths. They were getting to know each other again.

"I missed you," she whimpered into their kiss. It was her weak voice that sent Nick back into reality. He took a good look at her and stared into her clear eyes. He saw his reflection and he saw how much he wanted this night to go on further. He looked deeper and he saw how much she wanted it to go further. His hands met the hem of her shirt subconsciously and she looked down to see what he had touched. She grinned, thinking he wanted it off, and reached down and pulled it off.

It took him a moment to realize the intensity of the situation they were in. He was completely sober and awake while she was drifting away- far from the dimensions of reality. His fingers looped through the loops of her denim shorts. She smiled at him and he looked down. He really wanted this. He wanted her. He needed her. She forgave him right? She talked to him. They were laughing. They were having fun. And she kissed him. And everything was feeling so right. So he could take advantage of this moment. Right?

**A/N Beeeeen awhile since I updated this story!!! I got my inspiration back to start writing this again. And I'm going to finish it this week. New updates every single day. So make sure you read because they will go by fast. The next chapter is where everything starts to turn around and there is Niley and there is a lot of other things. Its a big chapter. So watch out. And..will Nick take advatange of Miley or not? Who knows........except me of course. **


	10. Look After You

Miley leaned forward and circled her arms around his neck, but Nick kept an awkward space between them. Her forehead crunched up in confusion and he leaned back, scooting himself away from her. He handed back her shirt, but she shook her head.

"Where are you going?" she asked in her vulnerable voice. Nick looked away- he couldn't answer her when she looked so devastated.

"I know you don't understand right now. But when you walk up tomorrow morning you're going to regret this," he brushed his fingers on her smooth cheek. She closed her eyes and the contact of his touch and enjoyed his presence before he took off He grabbed his jacket and took one more look at the brunette before closing the door.

Miley sat there, thinking slowly of Nick's departure. The moment hit her hard and droplets of clear liquid glossed the surface of her eyes. She grabbed the bottle, but it was completely empty and she internally groaned at herself that she didn't pick up an extra one It was time to nurse the broke heart the old school way- just cry yourself to sleep. She lied down on the catch and shut her eyes, blocking and tears from spilling. Her imagination created a world for her to escape to- a dreamland that was void of any of the present drama.

* * *

It had been a couple weeks since her drunken episode and frankly Miley wanted to forget the night. She had blurry flashbacks of small moments, but Nick hadn't called to verify that those things actually happened so she just wanted to move on. Tonight, her father was hosting a record company party and she had to be present. Which also meant that she had to see Nick.

Her head spun from the thought and her stomach flipped over from yet another flashback of their drunken escapade. She mentally kicked herself and decided that now was the time she should try to get ready. Her feet made her way to her wide walk in closet and she sifted through her dresses, looking for the perfect one.

Her hands played with the leather like material of a black dress that was stored away for special occasions. She lifted her eyebrows and smirked. It would be perfect for the night- completely accentuating her curves. Not that she wanted Nick to notice her, but she did want him to call. Especially after walking out on a her while she was drunkenly throwing herself at him.

The night was a blur but she could kind of remember the general gist of what happened. She couldn't have been imagining everything. Could she? She slipped off her thoughts and scrambled into her shower, peeling off her clothes and letting the steam surround her. As soon as she was finished, she went straight to her straightener. She flattened up her messy hair and pulled it back into a sleek pony tail. Her hands reached for a dark, black eyeshadow and she added a smokey effect to her eyes.

Finally, she slipped into her black dress. She made sure to zip up everything in the back and then finally assess herself in the mirror.

"Look good, chump," she squeezed her cheeks in emphasis and chuckled. The things she did when she was suffering from loneliness. She slipped on her black heels and head downstairs to make sure all the party preparations were in place.

The caterer had begun to arrive and set up the buffet while the bartender was setting up the glasses. She walked over to the make shift bar and nodded at the young man.

"A glass of tequila, please," she asked nonchalantly. The boy shook his head and laughed, pouring her what she wanted. "What?" she inquired. He smirked back at her.

"The party hasn't started and you're already at it?"

"Yeah, well. I'm going to need a lot of this tonight," she glared at him, turning around and walking towards the event planner. It was a formal, business party so everything had to be prim and proper. She surveyed the decor and decided everything was set in place for the incoming guests.

The first doorbell rang around a quarter to eight. Miley walked and opened the door, knowing fully well that her father probably wasn't in the mood to come downstairs just yet. She did this routine quite monotonously until one guest woke her up from her day dream. She opened the door to two young men- one that had his chocolatey eyes trained on her.

"Hey," he whispered in all his glory. Miley locked her eyes to the ground and stayed silent. He moved his way inside, letting Joe come in after him. "Oh, so you're not talking to me now?" he snapped, automatically realizing his words were laced with annoyance. "I didn't mean for it to come out like that."

Miley rolled her eyes and back away, heading towards the family room where a crowd of guests were compiling. Joe gave him a shrug. Nick used his instincts and shot after her, grabbing her wrist and tugging her into the kitchen- a place where the could talk quietly and without and interruptions.

"When are you going to forgive me?" he asked. He put his hands on her shoulders and directed her attention towards him.

"Forgive you? You used me-"

"I'm sorry. You know I care about you Miley. You know that. I didn't fake any of that." his voice was rising and he didn't realize it.

"Oh, I'm not finished. And then when I was drunk you just walked out on me," she retorted, her cheeks were red from anger and Nick started to back down- he hadn't known that she remembered everything.

"I- I didn't want to take advantage of you," he stuttered, trying to regain his composure back.

"Yeah, well you took advantage of my ignorance before. A second time wouldn't have made a difference," she spat back bitterly. She placed her hand on the island and tried to calm herself down.

"I'm sorry. God, this is such a mess." He looked at her, waiting for her reaction. She just shook her head, clearly fighting back some tears.

"I can't forgive you right now, Nick. Its just too much. Too fast. You and Demi. And-"

"What happened with Demi?" His adrenaline started to pump when Miley's words echoed through his ears. She looked down for a brief second and let out her pained words.

"She ran away. Its whatever," she shrugged it off, but Nick could see the pain devour her. "Back to this, I can't right now."

"So, what do you want to do?" His eyes showed his fear and Miley was well aware at the fact that this might just be the complete end to everything.

"Just wait it out. Hopefully things get better," she mumbled. He dipped his head down and shut his eyes, processing everything she had just said. He knew he screwed up. And he knew it would take awhile to gain her trust back, but exactly how long?

"How can I make this up to you?" his voice was broken.

"I don't know if you can," she replied silently- her tears getting the best of her. She picked herself up and walked towards the door, escaping from the conversation. Nick tossed his head back and groaned. Demi's words still echoed in his brain. _Where there's a will there's a way_. He hoped she was right. He wanted to fix this. He needed to fix this.

He followed her trail, but walked towards Joe. His brother was holding a conversation with various members of the company, entertaining them with his humor.

"Hey, man," he put a hand on Joe's shoulder and motioned him towards the side.

"Whats up, man?"

"Just talked with Miley," Nick confessed. He looked over towards the brunette who was on yet another glass of alcohol. "I broke her man. And Demi's gone."

"Wait, what do you mean Demi's gone?" his eyes were now wide. He whipped his head around to see if he could see the raven haired girl anywhere. He had no such luck. "What do you mean she's gone?" he repeated. Nick shrugged his shoulder and groaned.

"I don't know, Joe. Miley seems so hurt and lost and something just isn't making sense," he growled. He stomped his fut to let his anger out. He mumbled incoherent sentences and finally calmed down, letting Joe get in at least a word or two in.

"Dude, calm down. The girl clearly has issues that she's dealing with right now. She's not going to be able to forgive you right now."

"That's what she just said!" Nick shouted. He looked around as they were starting to gain attention to their private conversation. He made a point to lower his voice next. "But what is breaking her apart? And why does that have to mess up the route to her forgiveness?"

"She's dealing with you and with Demi. Give her some time," Joe advised. Nick clenched his Joe. This was already something he had known- he just wanted someone to tell him that this would all be over soon. And that she would be in his arms in no time. The only person that gave him that type of assurance was gone.

"Whatever," he muttered. He gathered up his strength and wandered around the house. He looked around for Miley- just to catch a glimpse of her- but she was no where in sight. His eyes wandered toward the staircase and his feet carried him upstairs.

He was left alone in his own swarm of thoughts while pacing through the hallway. Everything was dead quiet while all the conversation was being taken care of downstairs. He slumped himself down and sat at the end of the corridor. He swung his head down and mumbled to himself. He was trying to convince himself that the pain would go away.

After all, he was and upcoming musician His tour was on fire and people loved him. He could deal with Miley.

Nick was woken up from these thoughts once he heard a sudden crash. His ears perked up and heard slurring with a deep voice. His adrenaline pushed him over the edge and fear took over. The noise was coming from Miley's room.

* * *

Miley cowered into the corner. Billy Ray swaggered towards her and glared into her eyes

"Daddy, there's people down stairs," she whimpered, but he blocked out all her begging. He clamped his fists and took a swing. Miley winced in pain and closed her eyes. Tears that had been building were free flowing by now.

"You are a waste of my time," he shouted, letting his voice carry into the hallway. Miley scooted back even more. His shadow was raising and his pitch was flying through her ears. She couldn't take this anymore and she was about to be broken for one last time.

"D-Don't say that," she stammered. She saw him winding up for another blow and she shut her eyes.

* * *

Nick rushed through the door. His ears were alert and pulled himself towards the wooden slab. He heard the male voice shouting and he heard a weak voice reply back. He closed his eyes and wished for this not to be true. He didn't want what he was thinking to be true. Miley was a good person- she didn't deserve this. He took in one last gulp of air and barged through the door.

In front of his eyes, he saw the beholder of his heart shrinking by the second.

"Miley," he gasped just as Billy turned around, trying to shield his eyes from the light from the hall way.

Miley opened her eyes and gasped. The pain was going to be over soon. She had a feeling. Nick scrambled to the floor and pulled her out of the corner, skilfully taking advantage of the fact that her father was confused. She hopped on her feet and ran towards the door, getting her protection from Nick.

Billy Ray staggered forward and held a solid glare at his opponent. Nick stood in his place and stepped forward.

"What are you doing," the older man spat. He gained control of his muscles and prepared to launch himself at Nick, but the young boy ducked and covered, making Billy Ray stumble forwards. Nick turned around and put in a quick punch. His fist barged into Billy's face and hit him square in the eye. The impact made him fall back and his intoxication made him close his eyes- he was passed out.

Nick scrambled around, looking for Miley in the dim light. The brunette was shaking as she hovered over he father. The light showed on her and Nick could finally see her face. She looked relieved. Her shoulders were upright as though a big weight was taken off. She looked at Nick softly. And in with a second, she was on the floor. She fainted.

**A/N So, this is the big chapter where everything starts turning around (=. Nick finally knows whats been happening. Things will start slowing down now and there will be more Niley. I have at least three chapter planned out in my head...so I just need to put in two more filler chapter to make this story a total of 15 chapters. Sorry, if there were an typos, I didn't really have the energy to edit so yeah.....Oh and I got third place for Best One shot in the NJK awards for Childish Fantasies so thank you so much for that.  
**


	11. Tomorrow

Miley groaned once her stomach started to rumble. She slowly opened her eyes and sat upright once she realized she was in unfamiliar territory. This wasn't her room. She tossed her head around to the right, finding a window. Her feet carried her the wall and she swung open the curtains, observing a busy street. Her head tossed and turned through memories until she finally remembered what had happened the previous night. She heard the door creak and her reflexes took over.

"Sorry to bother you ma'am but Mr. Lucas wanted me to check up on you. To see if you were still sleeping or not." The intruder was a woman in her sixties, dressed in a work uniform. She had a neatly pinned bun and everything about her was meticulous.

"Mr. Lucas?" Miley raised her eyebrows. She nodded. "So this is his place?"

"Yes ma'am."

"Oh, you can call me Miley. I'm really not into...." Miley sighed. She didn't know how to react to the fact that she was in Nick's apartment. "Where is Mr, Lucas?"

"He's eating breakfast ma'am," the lady responded- automatically earning a look from Miley. "Sorry, ma' -Miley." She bent her head down as a from of curtsies and left Miley to herself.

"This is Nick's apartment," Miley whispered to herself. She looked around her room, spying clothes laid out on a dresser. He must have grabbed stuff before they had left last night. She sighed at the thought that he was her knight in shining armor. She was supposed to be hating on him right now. She pulled on the jeans he had retrieved and a random shirt before starting her attempt to hunt him down.

She duly noted that his apartment was more like a penthouse when it took her a couple of moments to route herself to the dining room. She drummed her fingers on the coffee table, staring at him emptying his cereal box.

"I can't stay here, Nick," she finally said. His eyes lifted up, revealing a small glint in his eyes. He grabbed his cereal bowl and chugged down some milk. He wiped off of some of the liquid and turned towards the brunette.

"Well, you're not going back there," he chuckled. She glared at him and bit her lip.

"I can't stay here," she repeated. She held her gaze- hoping he would back down. "I'll get a hotel or something. Anything. I can't stay here."

"You don't have any money." She was about to open her mouth but stopped midway. He was right. She would have to go back to her father to get any money and after last night, that certainly wasn't an option.

"We're broken up." He shrugged and walked towards the sink. He tilted his head and leaned back onto the counter, giving her a small smirk.

"That doesn't mean I can't help you out when you need my help." Miley groaned and turned her back towards him. Her shoulders fell inwards as a sign of defeat and Nick walked towards her. "What about this. When Demi comes back, you can go. And figure out whatever you need to do then. But as of right now, you're staying here." Miley hunched forward and whipped around- tear stains on her cheek

"She isn't going to come back Nick," her voice carried through the large hallways of the penthouse. Nick took a step back from the impact of her voice and drew in a breath. "She left me. So why don't you do what everyone in my life has down. Why don't you just leave me the hell alone." Her eyes were rimmed with red.

"Hey," Nick circled his arms around her as she sobbed into his chest. He bit his lip and let her take comfort in his body. "She'll come back. I promise," he whispered. He stroked her hair and guided her towards the couch. "I'll make it happen. I promise," he leaned back and looked into her eyes. She looked broken and he needed to fix it.

"You know you could leave right now," she stammered. Her voice had a tinge of raw vulnerability and she wasn't looking him in the eye. She was actually afraid that he would listen to her and leave her.

"Look at me," he held his index finger to her chin, lifting her face up to level with his. She blinked rapidly, signaling that she was holding back some tears. "I hurt you once and I'm not going to do it again." She nodded absently at his response. "You should go to sleep," he leaned in to give her a kiss on her forehead, but she backed away.

"This doesn't mean I forgive you," she shot out. She gulped down his soft, angelic face and tilted her head down. "I'm just not ready right now, Nick."

"I understand," he whispered. He gave her a warm hug and lifted himself off the couch. "You better get more sleep though. You've been through a lot," he offered. Miley curled up and laid herself down on the couch. Nick reached for the remote and turned off the TV. He walked into his room and gathered up some blankets to cover her. It was only morning but she still had a lot of damage to sleep off. And Nick saw that in her weary eyes.

He stepped and took a moment to enjoy her beauty. He couldn't believe that he had messed their relationship up. He never wanted to let her go, but his stupid mistakes broke both his and heart. He smiled as she sighed happily. He smiled at the thought of her letting go of the horrible world that stomped on her body everyday.

He walked towards his cellphone, which was lying on the counter. He grabbed the device and punched in familiar numbers. He lifted to his ear and waited as the ringing stopped and his brother's voice came on.

"What's up?" Joe mumbled. Nick heard some shuffling.

"Did I wake you up?" Nick mumbled, walking towards his room so he could hold a private conversation- away from Miley's ears.

"Nah, man," he mumbled back, fixing the phone back to his ears. "So is Miley still there?" Joe inquired. He had helped Nick smuggle her into the car without anyone in the party noticing. Nick caught him up with the full situation once they started their drive back home. And to say he was slightly worried about Miley was an understatement. He knew he betrayed her, but she was like a little sister to him and he truly felt horrible.

"Yeah, I convinced her into staying," he replied, leaving an awkward silence between the two. Joe was the first one to break it.

"So, you called?" he ventured out. Curiosity was getting the best of him. Nick shifted uncomfortably and sighed.

"I need you to do me a favor," Nick turned around to see that his door was properly closed shut before continuing on the conversation.

* * *

Miley woke up from her nap around noon. She could feel the sun rays hitting her in her face as she nuzzled into the couch. She smiled from a good sleep and finally opened her eyes, letting her see reality again. She frowned and sat up. She crossed her legs and took a good look of the apartment. Nick was nowhere in sight so she decided to try his room.

She knocked a couple of times, but there was no answer. She placed her ear on the white painted object and heard low murmurs. She rolled her eyes and knocked louder, thinking he had a girl in his room.

"Coming!" she heard his muffled voice. She rolled her eyes and turned around in anger. She was going to start on the path of forgiving him, but he was already sleeping with other girls. She mumbled to herself, unaware that his bedroom door opened.

"Miley?!" she heard a man's voice. And it wasn't Nick's She whipped her head around to find Joe sitting on the couch in Nick's bedroom. Nick was leaning against the door frame with a small smile on his face.

"I thought there was a girl in your room," Miley spoke up. Joe howled in laughter and slumped into the couch grinning at Nick.

"So you were jealous?" Nick smirked. Miley's face turned into a sharp glare and she huffed at his question.

"No, I just thought there was a girl in your room." Miley shifted her eyes from the two brothers. Nick was still smirking and her nerves were working up.

"Why don't you come sit here and talk?" Joe patted the couch with a grin on his face. He found the situation oddly amusing. He got up and walked towards the door as an effort to invite her into the private conversation.

"I can't. I haven't forgiven either of you," Miley pointed out. She sighed and looked at Nick with her lips curving downwards. "I'm hungry though." Nick chuckled and walked past her towards the counter.

"I can whip something up," he shouted over his shoulder, reaching for the top cabinet. His shirt rose a little upwards, allowing Miley to see his cleanly toned abs. She shut her eyes and tried to shake any inappropriate thoughts from her body. She decided the redirect her attention elsewhere- for the time being. "So what were you guys talking about?"

"Oh, we were going to-" Joe started up, but Nick gave a harsh look in his direction.

"We were going to nothing. We just talked about guys stuff, you know," he placed a macaroni box on the counter and glared at Joe. "Don't you have somewhere to be, Joe?" he asked. His voice was hinting and ulterior meaning and Joe seemed to pick it up.

"Yes, actually I do," Joe grabbed his jacket and walked to the door. "I'm going there right now, Nick. Call me if you think of something," he gave Miley a smiled. "I hope you forgive us sometime soon. We're fun kids," he winked and slipped out.

"He's a charmer," Miley commented. She took a seat on a bar stool and propped her hands up to rest her head.

"Yeah, he's Joe," Nick chuckled. He emptied the box into a steal pan and moved towards the stove. He turned the knob and started heating up the macaroni.

"What were you guys talking about?" Miley tried again. She put on her best curious face and looked Nick straight in the eyes. He shook his head and walked towards another stool to take a seat. He laid his arms down and fit his head, taking a slight nap.

"It was nothing, seriously," he responded softly. He gave her a reassuring smile and took a quick look at the stove. He wanted to make sure that the food actually got cooked so they could eat.

"I never knew you could cook," Miley commented.

"There's a lot you don't know about me," he laughed.

"Well, who's fault is that," Miley retorted bitterly. She quickly closed her eyes in a reflex and peeked open. "Sorry, I didn't mean for it to sound like that. I know you're trying to make up for what you did."

"Its okay. You have a right to be bitter about it. I mean if it wasn't for you, I wouldn't have gotten here," Nick motioned at the place. "I bought this from the money I made out of the promo tour," he explained quickly. She gave him a weak smile and nodded.

"How did the promo tour go?" she finally got onto the subject of his music.

"It went pretty well. Speaking of music," he chuckled. "Back from the other night, I never knew you actually write?" he arched his eyebrows in anticipation of Miley's response. She giggled and shook her head.

"Where is your maid," she quickly changed the subject.

"I gave her the day off. And no, you do not get to change the subject on me, missy," he pointed his finger at her. Miley rolled her eyes and shrugged. "You had a guitar with you too. I didn't know you could play."

"There's a lot of things you don't know about me," Miley retorted, mimicking his earlier words. Nick gave out a fake laugh and stuck his tongue out at her. Miley giggled and pushed him off the stool. "You better go check on the macaroni."

"Hey, I'm a professional chef. Don't tell me what to do," he huffed, dragging his feet as he walked over to the stove. He grabbed the nearest spoon and tossed over the macaroni to see if everything was finished

"No, apparently you're a professional con artist," Miley laughed at her comeback. Nick whipped around to see if she was joking or not and smiled once he saw her rosy cheeks. "What, we can't at least joke about it?"

"No, joking is good. It means we're getting through it," he said. He gave her a smile and reached for the plates that were stacked up in the cabinet. He set out two and dumped in half of the pot in each. He came back to her with a grin and set the plates down, taking seat net to her and never letting his eyes leaver her face.

"Don't you think you forgot something?" Miley asked, stifling a giggle. Nick's eyebrows creased in worry and he looked around. "The cheese, Nick. The cheese," she supplied with a fit of giggles. Nick slowly turned to look at the plate and groaned.

"Making a fool out of myself in front a beautiful girl. Good going, Nick."

"You are not allowed to flirt with me," Miley glared at him. Nick put on an innocent face and leaned into her.

"Why not?" he asked.

"You just can't. Now get me my cheese," she demanded. And Nick did what she asked. He walked around the kitchen and retrieved the melted cheese.

"Nick," Miley started once she saw his face again. Nick looked at her and nodded for her to go on. "Thanks for my "Tomorrow"." He creased his eyebrows in confusion and she chuckled. "Like in 'Annie'. This was the first day I woke up to no problems. And I really want to start fresh." She smiled at him and he smiled back. She was going to be okay.

**A/N Joe and Nick are hiding something. But what? And Miley is trying really hard to forgive Nick especially with the fact that he's helping her out. And there's a minor character coming in next chapter. Hope you guys like the update. I was too tired to update yesterday so sorry, but this story will be finished by Sunday. I don't want to carry it on after Spring Break. **


	12. Change

There were two outfits she could pick. It boiled down to one thing- did she want to impress Nick or not? Her eyes flickered from each pair of clothes to the other. Her breath hitched and she pumped out a long awaited sigh. She knew what she was going for and her hand reached for the short skirt and the v neck t shirt. She dumped on some accessories that she had bought the day before (after Nick had pressured her into going shopping) and applied a daily dose of makeup with a hint of passion. If her long tan legs didn't catch his attention then nothing would.

"Time to make him beg for you, Mi," she grinned into the mirror and hopped off her bed, darting towards the door. He wasn't in the living room so she decided to try the kitchen. Much to her displeasure, the room was invaded with solitude. She twisted her curls with a lone finger. "He had to be here some where," she thought to herself.

She made a quick decision to invade his privacy. She barged into his room and was fully ready to obnoxiously bellow out his name, but he wasn't on his bed. Her eyes directly landed on the couch where he was dressed in his pajamas. And not to mention, he was accompanied by a girl. A girl whose perfect hair bounced on her shoulders and her face was graced with a polite smile

"Oh, I'm sorry," Miley said out of surprise. She opened her mouth slightly and tried to move her feet, but she was paralyzed into position. She bent her head down from the awkward occurrence. "Um, yeah," she tried moving again, but her heart seemed to stop all bodily operations.

"Oh, don't worry about it. I was just leaving," the girl bubbled up. She uncrossed her legs and propped herself up. "We'll talk about this later, Nick?" she nodded. He gave her a wink and nodded. She picked up her purse and walked by Miley, giving her a grin of recognition. "You're Miley Stewart," she halted in front of Miley- her raven haired curls bouncing along her fair face. She gushed a shade of scarlet and giggled.

"Yup, that's Miley," Nick proudly stated, finally getting off the couch. "Try to keep it under wraps, okay Selena?" She grinned back at Nick and patted her hands on her business slacks before looking back at Miley.

"I keep my lips sealed, Nicky," she retorted. "Nice meeting you," she echoed to Miley, making her way to Nick's front door and finally disappearing from view.

"So, let me get this straight. You want me to forgive you, but you go around and sleep with other girls?" Miley slammed her hands to the counter and jumbled through Nick's drawers, ready to feed her angry self. She glared down at her skirt and slammed a drawer open to search for a spoon.

"Woah, is someone jealous?" Nick arched his eyebrows and leaned on the counter. He relaxed his body and observed her as she rampaged through the kitchen. She abruptly stopped what she was doing and spun around. Her hands were placed on her hops and her eyes were turning with a tinge of red.

"No!" she barked. She huffed out a frustrated breath and side glanced at her cereal box. "Why would I need to be jealous," she calmly said. She dug her hands in and grabbed a fist full of fruit loops and stuck them into her mouth.

"Because I'm that irresistible," he winked at her. He smirked as her eyebrows tilted down and her forehead creased with annoyance. He was getting to her and that's what he wanted. She tensed up under his stare and smirked back at him.

"Well, good thing I'm not interested," she spat out the lie that was itching to get through her throat. His face fell for a second until he gained back full composure.

"You're a bad liar," he chuckled. He walked towards her and hopped on the counter as he watched her grab another hand full of cereal. "Besides, I thought you didn't forgive me yet. So why do you care so much?"

"I don't care. I couldn't care less," she fake smiled at him and turned towards the table. She set down a bowl and turned towards the refrigerator to grab milk. "I just don't want my temporary roommate to run around with STDs because he's sleeping with random girls." She stifled a giggle as she was reaching for the milk bottle. She turned around to see Nick's reaction, but he was leaning back and enjoying the amusing situation. Her anger bubbled once she realized that she was completely losing in this situation.

"She's my manager, Miley," he laughed, clutching his stomach. He rolled off the counter and hopped right in front of her.

"You know sleeping with your manager isn't a good idea," she raised her eyebrows and crossed her elbows, letting the cold milk come in contact with her skin. She shivered as the bottle met her skin and as Nick lowered his gaze into her blue eyes.

"I wasn't sleeping with her. We were talking about stuff. It was purely a business meeting." Nick's statements washed away Miley's previous insecurities. She stood still as the wave of immaturity hit her. She had been jealous for no reason. She closed her eyes for a second, bringing back the flashback of Selena. The girl was dressed in all business attire while Nick was lounging in his pajama pants. Of course it had been a business meeting. She was just so centered around the fact that they were in his room alone.

"What were you talking about?" Miley said slowly. She was already feeling stupid enough for getting that angry of nothing.

"Nothing," Nick shrugged off her question and grabbed the milk bottle. He reached the cupboard for another bowl and set his place at the breakfast table.

"Come on, Nick. You can tell me," Miley nudged him She was curious now.

"I don't think that's a good idea," he said seriously. He concentrated himself on his cereal and milk. He put in the spoon in his mouth and held it there for a second as he silently hoped that Miley would drop the subject. Unfortunately for him, she didn't.

"Nick, tell me," she pushed on. She dragged at her own chair and placed her elbows on the table, demanding an answer. She narrowed in her eyes and drummed her finger tips across the glossy, wooden surface of the table.

"I'm not sure how you'll take this," he confessed. He swirled around the spoon in the milky liquid that sat peacefully in his bowl. He took one more gulp of the milk and looked up at Miley who was still silently waiting for his answer. He sighed and decided to surrender. "I'm going on tour in a month."

"You're what?" Miley's mind hit hyper drive. He was leaving her in a month. And he wasn't planning on even telling her. What was she supposed to do once he left? Sit around and take care of herself. Try to fit the broken pieces of herself back together again? How could she do that without anyone else's help. She needed him.

"We're announcing that I'm opening for Connect 2 in their world tour," he carefully explained. "The announcement is next week," he watched her silently prod through her thoughts. Her silence was painfully beating at his heart and he didn't know how to break it. Was she mad at him?

"When were you planning on telling me?" she asked.

"I was going to tell you, but I wanted you to get settled first," he quickly covered up his tracks. "Plus, I didn't think you would really like the idea."

"I don't know," she confessed. "I don't know. Its going to be weird staying at your house without you being here," she played out what was on her mind. She looked at him and frowned that he was grinning. "What?"

"Do you want to come with me, Miley?" he asked. He had a bright grin on his face and prayed that she would say yes and just run back into his arms instead of constantly denying her own feelings. "You know you want to," he taunted. She flicked up her eyebrows and crossed her arms defiantly.

"No, I don't actually, Nicholas," she teased back with the use of his full names. He scoffed and got up to rinse his bowl out. She creeped up behind him and clutched his sides with a harmless tickle.

"Stop it, Miley!" he yelped. He swiveled around and ducked down to grab her be the legs. He flipped her over onto his shoulder and carried her towards the sofa. He twirled around and smashed into her the couch, tumbling down with her. She was in a fit of giggles as he land his palms against her sides. He curled hes fingers and poked into her sides. She yelped out in surprise and tossed and turned as he continued to tickled her.

"Not fair," she groaned. He kept continuing his actions until she started gasping for air. The two fell back into the couch and laughed at their childish actions. Miley wiped away the happy tears away from her eyes and pulled on a mischievous smirk that was directed towards Nick.

"What?" he asked innocently. She grinned tackled him, allowing her self to hover over him. "Woah, there child," he teased. She blew back strands of hair that were streaming across her face.

"Apologize," she arched her eyebrows and smirked. She pinned him down harder. His hands were placed to his sides and her grip was in his shoulders. He looked down and finally noticed she was wearing a skirt. He chuckled and shook his head. "I said apologize," she held her grip down harder.

"No," he whispered before letting his fingers crawl up her thigh. She shivered at his touch and pressed herself off of him before he could get any higher up her skirt. She sat upright and straightened her clothes before glaring at him.

"You played dirty," she accused.

"You earned it," he chuckled back. He grabbed the remote and leaned back. She leaned in closer to him.

"Nick, thanks for everything," she said. She gave him a small smile and pulled back her hair, giving him a clear view of her face.

"No problem," he position himself towards her, ready to get into an intense conversation. "Anything to have you laughing again," he stroked her cheek with his thumb. She closed her eyes from the tender show of affection and breathed out.

"Its such a nice change from everything. I really thought that I would be stuck in that hell for the rest of my life," she whimpered. He cradled her closer and held her head towards his chest for her comfort.

"Hey, things have changed. You're in a better place now," he lifted her head off to maintain a solid eye contact with her. "Okay?" he asked for confirmation of her understanding. She nodded. They were very close by this moment and Nick couldn't keep his emotions at bay anymore. He was starting to dip down and their lips were almost touching. They both held their breath until and abrupt noise rang through his apartment.

"That's the doorbell," Miley pointed out obviously.

"Yeah, I better get it." Nick rose up and walked towards the door. He placed his hand on the brass knob and opened the door to reveal a man in a business suit. His bald head reflected the light in the hall and his short figure made Nick adjust his gaze.

"Well, hello Mr. Lucas?" he asked politely.

"Yeah, that's me," Nick spoke impatiently to the man. Miley lifted herself up to get a better view of the person, but she didn't have any such luck.

"I have the information you requested," he said promptly. Nick's eyes lit up and looked over his shoulders to see Miley curiously peeking from the couch. He nodded at her and walk to the hallway, closing the door behind him.

"You found her?" Nick asked eagerly, waiting for the answer the man was about to give.

**A/N Def. not as long as the other chapters but pretty eventful. It sets up for the next three chapters and the ending of the story. (=. Soooooooo.......the story will be finished in three days. YAY. I hope you guys enjoyed reading as much as I have enjoyed writing. Its cool to see the story I thought up being written out and posted for other people to read. **


	13. You Found Me

Miley wait a couple of moments until Nick walk back into the apartment. He had his cellphone to his ear and she could partially hear what he was saying.

"Hey, Joe, yeah he just swung by actually," Nick took a peek at Miley to see if she was tuning into the conversation. Her ears were perked up and she was looking curiously at him. "One second," he whispered into the receiver and crawled back into his room, gently shutting the door.

"Hey, sorry, she was eavesdropping," Nick chuckled into the phone. He grabbed his nearest pair of jeans and started to pull them on. "So, he came over and its good news, man," he mumbled.

"That's great!," Joe tumbled through his own apartment in search of decent clothes.

"I have to be here with Miley so do you mind doing the honors?" Nick asked sheepishly. He really wanted to help Joe out with this errand, but he had to be there for Miley too. He didn't want her all alone in the apartment.

"Yeah, sure," Joe screeched in. He buckled on his belt and properly held the phone up to his face. "I'll see you in a couple of hours, okay?" he checked the time and grabbed his keys, ready to set foot outside.

"Thanks," Nick grinned. He flopped his phone shut and grabbed a jacket. He needed to entertain Miley for the time being. He rushed out of his bedroom to see Miley lazily flipping through television shows. She had a frown on her face and her demeanor emitted waves of frustration. "Let's go," he nudged her shoulder, but she wasn't responding. She let out an angry sigh and whipped her head in his direction.

"The paps might find us," she retorted. She angrily pressed buttons on her remote and switched channels. She landed on the entertainment channel, which was displaying pictures of Nick all over the screen. "Aww, the hunk heartthrob is looking for romance," she howled with laughter as she imitated the reporter on screen. Nick grabbed the remote from her hands and blacked out the television.

"You shopped all across Rodeo Drive the other day and the paps didn't find you. I'm pretty sure we can manage to ditch them for on day," he glared at her. She managed to duck behind an innocent face as he growled at her.

"Fine, but we better go some place fun," she whipped her tongue out at him. "What were you so secretly talking to Joe about?" she wondered out loud. Nick gave her a sarcastic smile and grabbed her hand as they headed to the front door.

"We will have fun," he groaned and automatically switched to a smirk for his next comment. "And we were talking about how annoying you are, but I didn't want to hurt your feelings by saying it right in front of you."

"Funny," Miley poked her tongue out Nick slid down the hallway and took a couple of unfamiliar twists and turns to land in the back of the apartment building. The two flew down a couple flight of stairs and exited out through an alley where Nick's old car was parked. "I thought you would have traded this thing in once you hit celeb status," Miley chuckled.

"Its my get away car," he winked. He gabbed the steering wheel and slowly backed out of the alley, giving the paps who were hounded outside of the entrance no idea that they were escaping.

"So, tell me about your search for romance," Miley giggled. She adjusted her seat and was carefully prepared to listen to Nick's answer.

"What about it?"

"How's it going?" Miley smirked at his discomfort. Nick shook his curls out of the way and turned at the net traffic light. He adjusted his mirrors and side glanced at Miley.

"Its actually going pretty well," he smirked at her. Miley's knees gave in and she silently thanked god that she was sitting down. She turned her head towards the window and rubbed off the blush that was creeping up in her cheeks.

"I haven't forgiven you, yet," she retorted. She kept her gaze on him and nodded solemnly before actually responding.

"I know, but I'm irresistible, Miss Miley Stewart," he gave her a lopsided smile and pulled into a near parking lot. He unbuckled his belt and waited for her curious stares to come to an abrupt halt.

"Where are we?" she asked as she took in the tall caged areas. She saw a couple of people wearing helmets.

"Where do you think we are?" he grinned. He slipped out of the car and walk over to her side, opening her door just like a gentleman would. She stepped out of the car and looked at her surroundings with a confused look.

"We're at a batting cage?" she asked dubiously. He chuckled and nodded, leading her to the front desk. He dragged out his wallet and leaned on the counter, watching her cautiously. "Looks like fun," she nodded at the various cages where people were laughing their heads off.

"It is," the employee nodded at the two. "One cage and two bats?" he asked Nick who nodded. The man calculated the price and printed out a receipt before grabbing two steel bats and two helmets. He placed them on the counter and gave the two a nod after Nick payed the bill. Nick took a hold of the bats and slip the helmet on his head. He handed the other one over to Miley who rose her eyebrows.

"I am not getting helmet hair," she glared at him. He laughed and stuck the helmet on her head before she could add in any more refusals. She obediently walked beside him and the both climbed into the batting cage read to forget everything that was on their minds. Nick took the first swing and hit the ball perfectly. He gave a look over to Miley who who giggled back him. "No, way, I'm going to get hit or something," she whined.

"Shut up," he replied, grabbing her waist from behind and pulling her in. He circled his arms around her and fixed her hands on the bat. He grabbed her bare arms and gave her a practice swing. "Hold it like that. And swing like that," he taught. He kept his arm around her and pointed towards the machine. "Now, its going to shoot in three, two, one," as soon as he said it, the ball came flying at them and Miley backed up, causing the two to tumble backwards.

"Sorry," she laughed as the ball hit the fence. They were backed up to the side bench as Miley landed on Nick's lap. She squirmed into his grip and growled with laughter. She stomped her feet and leaned back into him.

"I'm really enjoying this position," Nick breathed into her ear. He slid his hands down to her bare legs as she shivered under his thoughts. She jumped up and grabbed her bat along with her.

"There's no time to waste. You have to teach me how to bat," she whined, pointing at the machine like a toddler. She furrowed her eyebrows and put on her best puppy dog face. That did the trick for Nick as he got up and walked towards her.

"Yes, I do have to do that," he grinned, allowing his arms to wrap back in their original place. She shifted into his grip and snuggled into him. They both got their grip on the bat and Miley focused her attention on the machine. Once the ball flew out, they both swung the bat back and powered into the ball with full force. "You did it," he whispered huskily into her ear. Miley's spine shot up as Nick neared her neck.

"I haven't forgiven you yet," she whispered the same sentence that she had been all week, but this time Nick didn't listen to her. His lips skimmed her neck and she melted in his touch. He pressed his lips on her tan skin and put his pressure on her.

"Yes, you have. Just admit it," he said in between his butterfly kisses on her neck. She let out a small squeal as he left on more kiss at the base of her neck. He left his warm breath on her neck and turned her around. He backed her into the fence and placed his hands around her lower back.

"What are you doing," she said out of breath. He was literally dragging ever ounce of breath away from her with his silent gaze. His eyes were laced with passion and the they were hounded with hunger- hunger for her.

"Tell me that you want me," he said in between breaths. His voice was raw and clean with truth. He was begging her. He pressed himself harder against her in hopes of convincing her the beg for him too.

"I-," she lost her voice. She was too broken to answer him and too nervous. She saw his face leaning into hers, expecting her to say yes. She closed her eyes and was ready to give up to his touch, but she felt something vibrating against her leg. They both looked down to see Nick's cellphone vibrate in his pocket. He sighed and gave her a nod before backing up and answering the call.

"Hello," he asked in an annoyed tone. He was obviously upset that their moment was just ruined by a simple phone call. Miley took the time to calm herself down and hide back all the adrenaline that was just now rushing through her veins.

"You sure its all done?" Nick asked the unknown caller. Miley tilted her head in confusion as to what Nick's urgent phone call was about. He let out a relieved smile and dipped his head down. She leaned in closer to him to get a peek at the other side of the conversation. She thought she heard Joe's voice but she could not be completely sure "Okay, we're on our way," he winked at Miley and hung up on the person.

"Who was that?" Miley asked. She perched her head up and tilted it to let Nick know she was curious.

"No one. Now, where were we," he backed her up into the fence and touched his nose to hers. She backed up a little more and squirmed in his grip. She frowned and pushed him off.

"Who was that?" she demanded. She lifted her helmet off and placed it on her right hip. She raised her eyebrows and demanded an answer. "Nick?" she prodded on. He just smirked at her and grabbed a hold of her hand, leading her out of the batting cage.

"Its nothing, Miley," he dragged out her name and laughed at her face as she scrunched up her nose.

"It isn't nothing," she replied. She dragged her feet so it would be harder for him to support her, but he turned around and gave her a condescending glare.

"Miley Ray Stewart, we have to go back to the apartment so get your butt back in that car," he gave her a pointed glare and she stomped off, taking his keys with her. He chuckled at her childish behavior and dropped off the bats and the helmet at the counter. He jogged towards the drive seat and put his hand to the handle. Once he pulled though, the door would open. Miley flashed the keys against the window and started giggling. "Open the door," he shouted, tugging the handle again. Miley shook her head.

"Should have told me who called," she stuck her tongue out. Nick groaned again and pounded on the window. She rolled over laughing and finally hit the open button on the keys. He tugged the door open and slipped into the driver's seat. "Relax, I would have driven off if I wasn't going to open it," she teased. He rolled his eyes and started up the engine. She buckled up. She kept giving him glances on the ride back. "What you're mad?"

Nick just shrugged back as an answer. She rolled her eyes and scoffed. She looked towards her window with frustration until she heard him lightly chuckling in the background

"You loser," she smacked him in the arm with a free hand.

"Hey, its called payback," he replied with a smile.

"So, you aren't mad," Miley asked. He shook his head and laughed. She bit her lip and shook her head with a grin. That boy was going to be the death of her. He parked in the back alley and the two sneakily went into the apartment building. Miley trailed behind him as he went through twists and turns to get back to his penthouse. Nick opened the door with his keys and stepped inside.

Miley's eyes glanced at the couch where two figures were waiting for the arrival. She saw Joe's face, but the girl's back was turned. Once the girl turned around to see who was at the door, Miley's jaw dropped.

**A/N A bit longer than the last update so that's gooood. Two more chapters left!!!!!!! Haha, I know I keep dragging this event out but it sets up for a nicely plotted last two chapters and I thought it came out really well (=. So, my goal for this story is 150 reviews for 15 chapters. That's twenty more reviews =D I'll post tomorrow and the day after and then its finished (= And then I'll post the two one shots in my head by next friday. And...then I don't really have any plans after that...so yeah. **


	14. Tonight

Miley scoffed and turned on her heal, slamming straight into Nick's chest. She narrowed in her eyes at him and scowled.

"You have to hunt her down in order for her to come back?" Miley spat. Her gaze burned through his eyes and winced at her angry look. She spun around and shook her head at the raven haired girl, who was silently sitting on the couch. "Nice to see you Demi," she said sarcastically before stomping off to her own bedroom and slamming the door shut. The noise of the door echoed through Nick's apartment and everyone froze in their position.

"I thought she'd be a little happy," Joe squeaked, rubbing his neck in confusion. He thought out loud, "I think she's mad at you Demi."

"You think?" she spat out sarcasm. She reached for her purse and gathered her belongings before lifting herself towards the door. Nick's reactions worked and he was in front of her, guiding her towards the couch before she could protest.

"She'll be okay soon," he soothed his love's sister. Demi sighed and slumped into the couch, resting her head within her hands. This was not at all how she imagined seeing Miley again. "Hey," nick gave her a warm hug and backed off until she gained a little bit of composure. She grabbed a tissue box and blew her nose. She got up to dispose the tissue and quietly returned to where Nick and Joe were.

"Nick's right. She was mad at him before but now they can't keep their eyes off of each other," Joe rationalized. He laughed at his own words. Nick smacked him in the arm and gave him an icy glare before turning to Demi.

"She'll forgive you," he paused before going on. "You just need to keep trying. Remember where there's a will there's away," Nick said, recalling the words Demi had said to him weeks ago. Demi nodded and took in a huge gulp of air. She stared at Miley's door and frowned a frown with a sense of pity for herself.

"She totally deserves to be like this. I just left her," Demi sobbed. She blinked her eyes rapidly to stop a fresh batch of tears from forming. Joe placed an arm around her shoulder and scooted her in closer to him. He try to soothe her as he he drew small circles on her back with his palm. "No, Joe. I don't deserve this," she wailed, smacking his hand away. She took out another tissue and blew her nose. Again she repeated the same action she had done before.

"Just talk to her and see what she says," Nick advised gently. He grabbed Demi's shoulders gently and guided her towards Miley's room. He gave her a small encouraging smile before guiding her hand towards Miley's doorknob.

"What if she hates me forever," Demi whined like a toddler. Nick rolled his eyes and twisted her hand, opening up the door. He pushed Demi inside Miley's bedroom, letting her solve her own problems all alone.

Demi stumbled into the lonesome room to find Miley propped up on her bed with her elbows, silently waiting for the door to open. She walked towards the bed and took a seat next to Miley, who was currently ignoring her presence.

"Hey," Demi squeaked. She brushed her hair out of her eyes and begged for Miley to give a halfway decent reply, but the brunette said nothing. Demi decided to try a little harder to break the imaginary barrier that was set between the two. "I know you don't understand why I left," she said quietly, hoping to get a reaction out of her younger sibling. That did the trick. Miley slowly turned her head towards her sister and chuckled sarcastically.

"It was definitely not to protect me, huh?" Demi winced at Miley's harsh words. She bent her head down. She did deserve what attitude her sister was giving her right now.

"I couldn't help you if I wasn't okay with everything yet, Mi," she whispered. She hoped that she could transfer her own thoughts into Miley's head and the situation would clear itself up. Miley sat upright and gave her attention to Demi, nodding her head for her sister to continue with her own apology.

Demi breathed out, "I had to gain my own strength before giving you the strength to move on. I did what was best for both of us." Her words hit a sincere note and Miley's mind raced with her own thoughts. Should she forgive Demi? "And, I talked to Nick on our double date before I left. I made sure there was someone there before I left you, Mi. I would never leave you alone," she reached for her sister's hand and held it lightly, waiting for Miley's own response.

"You talked to Nick?" Miley prodded on her own question. It seemed like when her whole world was spinning and shutting down all by itself that Nick was there to help her. And Demi made sure of that.

"Yeah, he told me he loved you and I made him swear that he would always be there for you," Demi answered as quickly as possible. She didn't like seeing her best friend go through so much hurt. And she didn't like that she was the cause of all that hurt.

"He's a jerk," Miley muttered under her breath. She clutched a fistful of her bed shoot and fumed out her anger. How dare he go behind her back to try to find her sister? Demi should have come back on her own terms. "Where were you all this time?" Miley wondered out loud. Demi chuckled.

"I free lanced with record companies. I sold a lot of my writing material to a couple of companies and just live on my own for awhile," she explained. She thought for a moment and decided to put in a little more explanation. "One of my songs is hitting the radio this week," she squealed in excitement. "Beyonce is singing it."

"Seriously? Demi, that's great," Miley gave her sister a gentle hug. She gave her a fake smile and looked out of her window wistfully.

"You aren't okay," Demi commented on her sister's mood but Miley shrugged her best friend off. She went to her drawers and grabbed a bunch of clothes, laying some out for Demi.

"Where are you staying right now?" Miley asked. She looked at her sister, who was watching Miley's ever move.

"I was staying at a hotel, but Nick and Joe offered me a place here until we can figure out where to go from here," she looked around the room and smirked at her surroundings. "Fancy place, huh?" she grinned at Miley. Miley gave her a soft smile and pulled her hair up in a messy bun before getting back on the bed.

"Paid for by father dearest," she giggled harshly. She wondered back through the previous conversation and proceeded to ask Demi more about her current career. "So how did they let you free lance?" she wondered curiously. Demi tossed her head back and laughed.

"I used dad's connections on that one," she grinned. "He needs to be good for something," she mumbled, causing Miley to smile her first real smile for moment. "So, seriously. Whats up with you? Something's wrong. Is it me?" she wonder out loud. Miley gave her a sigh and crossed her legs.

"Nick tried to kiss me," she confessed. She breathed out and pulled a strand of hair behind her ears. She was suddenly entertained by the patterns on her bed sheet.

"Well, he's in love with you," Demi pointed out the obvious, clearly confused as to what the big deal was. She put her full attention on Miley, whose face was crunched up with frustration.

"He isn't supposed to be my knight in shining armor, Demi," she confided in her sister. She was glad to have her best friend back. And even though it hurt that Demi had left, Miley understood where she was coming from. Everyone had their own way of dealing with things. "He's supposed to be the guy I hate. He used me."

"And now he's using himself to help you out," Demi retorted. "He really loves you, Mi."

"No, he doesn't," Miley angrily snapped. She got up from the bed and started pacing around. She mumbled incoherent sentences to herself and let a tear slide down her soft cheek. "He doesn't. If he did-," she stopped mid sentence because her brain had no idea what to say next. She was frozen in thought.

"You can't think of anything, huh?" Demi asked quietly. Miley looked at her and winced at the thought. Maybe, she didn't have the right to be mad at Nick anymore. Maybe, she wasn't mad at him anymore, Maybe, just maybe, she was afraid to put herself out there again. "You don't want to get hurt again. Do you?" she ventured out wisely.

"That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard, Demi," she countered back. She frowned to herself and sighed. "Let's not talk about this tonight," she replied, looking outside. The sun was finally setting down and the orange rays were charging into her room. The dim night sky was settling down and Miley felt a little bit more calm then she had before. She walked towards her private bathroom and changed into her pajamas. She walked out to find Demi already ready for bed.

"You coming to sleep?" Demi patted the bed with a yawn. It was heading to around eight o clock and she was already sleepy.

"Nah, I think I'm going to eat some dinner and then turn in," Miley answered, peeking through the bedroom door. She looked around to see if Nick or Joe were in the family room before racing into the kitchen. She was in the clear for right now. She grabbed the left over macaroni that Nick had made again and dumped into her plate. She warmed it up and silently waited until she had full permission to fill her stomach.

"Hey," a voice intruded her precious silence. Miley turned around and was faced by Nick. He was leaning on the counter smiling at her. "Did you solve everything with Demi?" he pondered

"Yeah," she mumbled.. She reached into the microwave and grabbed her dinner. She grabbed a soda from the fridge and set her place mat on the dining table, gulping her dinner down.

Nick watched with amusement as the petite girl gorged down all the food she laid her hands on. He grabbed a couple of various fruits and laid them down for her, nodding in encouragement to eat as much healthy stuff as she could

"Thanks," she sounded off. She reached for the nearest apple and took a bit, letting the piece fall down her throat and into her stomach. She wanted to get away from Nick as fast as possible. She wasn't ready to give herself in and she might damage what the relationship had built up to.

"What's the rush for," he asked. He chuckled as she gulped down her apple. She ate as much as she could before responding.

"Nothing," she murmured before getting up and going to rinse of her plate.

"Well, its not nothing. You're practically running away from me," he grinned at her. She let the cold water rush over her plate as she started cleaning. up. She opened up the dish washer and set all her utensils and plates in.

"I just want to go to sleep is all," she replied without looking him in the eyes

"Well, I kind of wanted to finish what we were about to do," he proposed. He had a shy look on his face as Miley turned towards him. His confidence began to surge back as he realized that he caught her off guard. He guided her against the kitchen counter.

"What are you doing," she said with a sharp tone.

"This," he chuckled letting his lips trail up her neck, completely ignoring her mood and tone at the moment.

"No, I don't want you to," she pushed him off with a certain force. He looked at her with bewilderment as she scoffed at him.

"What is your problem?" he shot back. He thought they were heading towards a good place, especially considering that they were getting along so well lately.

"You," she said with frustration. She walked out of the kitchen with a confused Nick on her trail.

"You were all up for it this morning," he shouted behind her. She turned around and stepped up to him with anger.

"I'm not some slut where just because you help me out I'm going to have sex with you!" her voice was full of anger and she didn't know where it was coming from. Was she going through great lengths just to protect herself from future hurt?

"Of course you aren't," Nick calmed down a little bit, but Miley didn't let him get another word in.

"And then you go behind my back to find Demi," she shrieked. Nick's eyebrows raised up to her accusation. He was only trying to help her and she gets mad at him for that?

"I was trying to help you out!" he yelled.

"You don't have the right," she said venomously. Now, Nick's head spun in circles. Was she just trying to make up excuses now. He looked her straight in the and grabbed her neck, slamming them both into an earth shattering kiss. He felt her kiss him back until she strongly pushed him away. She wiped her lips and slapped him. He felt his cheek throb as she turned around and headed back to her room. "I do not want to deal with this tonight," she said over her shoulder before leaving him all alone.

**A/N WOAH. Niley moment. One more chapter and this monster of a story is finito. I finally have a legit idea for a new story, but its going to take awhile before I even post it. I'm probably going to write a little bit of it even before I post it just to you know...know where its heading. So, yeah. It will be called Guys and Dolls when its posted. And the two one shots I'm posting Next week are called These Four Walls and Lights, Camera, and Action. The first is about Miley's last day on HM and she remembers a little Niley moment that occured on set as she says goodbye. And then the second is about Nick's day on the TLS set. (= So, yeah. That's all there is. I hope you like the update!**


	15. Right Here

Miley was literally frozen. The cold morning air swept through her bedroom and wiped any sign of warmth. She snuggled into her sheets and tried to drag on her piece of sleep for a little bit longer, but her head was already up and read to go. She sighed and got up, looking behind her to see a perfectly asleep Demi. She dragged herself towards her bathroom and got ready. It was weeks since she had spoken to Nick since the night he kissed her. Or the night she slapped him. You could refer to that night either way. She heard a light knocking on the bathroom door as she finished up her steamy shower.

"Come in!" she yelled clinging a towel over her. Demi yawned as she trudged to the sink and grabbed her toothbrush. She brushed her teeth and spat into the sink.

"So, I have good news," Demi mumbled once she rinsed her mouth and turned towards her sister. Miley was just about leaving the bathroom with Demi on her tail. She picked up a fresh pair of clothes and walked into their walk in closet, closing the door behind her for some privacy.

"What is it?" Miley half shouted through the door separating her and Demi. She climbed into her skinny jeans and pulled on her t shirt. She opened the closet door and pulled her hair into a mussy bun.

"I talked to dad's lawyers this morning," Demi chuckled. "They said as long as we don't say anything, we get our inheritance right now...you know rather than when he dies."

"Demi, I don't know if," Miley continued nervously. She thought over the idea in her head one more time before giving Demi and uncertain stare.

"Its money he rightfully owes us. And plus, it was never like we were strong enough to take him to court," Demi rationalized. She walked towards the mini sofa that was in their room and sat down, hoping Miley would go along with the situation.

"What would we do with the money?" Miley asked. She grabbed her comb and undid her hair, brushing every last strand until it was meticulously in place. She turned her back on Demi and walked towards her dresser to apply her daily dose of make up.

"I found a town house," Demi responded. She flipped open a magazine that was placed on the room's coffee table and handed it over to Miley. On the page she had opened it to was a delicately placed house that had a perfectly green trimmed lawn. It was a picture of perfection and looked like an adorable place to live in at the moment.

"Its cute," she responded to her sister, mentally kicking herself for not being excited about the idea.

"You don't want to leave Nick, do you?" Demi finally realized what was halting her sister's emotions. Miley stayed quiet and sighed shaking her head.

"Its weird. I've forgiven him, but I just can't get hurt again Demi, but I can't leave him either," Miley announced. Her head was laid sloppily towards her shoulder and an outsider could tell she was in deep thought.

"What are you going to do?" Demi prodded on. Miley shrugged her shoulders and laid down lamely. "He knows about the whole lawyer stuff and the townhouse. I told him," she said quietly.

"He was okay with me leaving?" Miley asked nervously and Demi giggled at her sister's ignorance.

"Of course he wasn't, but what was he supposed to say?" she held a hand to her sister's shoulder and leaned in to give her a hug. "You know he really loves you, Mi. He would never hurt you," she whispered into her friend's ear.

"I don't know, Demi. He could love me all he wants but he's hurt me once." Miley lifted herself off her bed and away from Demi's grasp. She stood next to her window and rolled her eyes as the sunshine charged into their room. She was amused to as how the day was so happy, but she was so miserable.

"Let's not think about this anymore," Demi advised. She took a hold of Miley's arm and led her outside into the family room. Both of the girls grabbed some waffles out of the fridge and leaned against the counter to see Joe sitting and watching television in the family room.

"Hey girls," Joe said, without lifting his eyes from the entertainment. He slumped back into the couch and listened intently to his program. Demi gave him a sneering look and rolled her eyes towards Miley.

"Can you actually talk to us?" Demi hollered before pouring syrup all over her waffles. Miley giggled and took out the forks to dig in on their breakfast.

"No, not really," he retorted sarcastically. He flipped the television off and walked towards the kitchen, yawning in the process. "What are you guys up to?"

"We're probably going to sneak out to do some furniture shopping for the new house," Demi supplied. Joe absentmindedly nodded and took a hold of Demi's waffle and took a bit before she could even say a word. "Hey, that's mine," she whined, using her best baby voice in the process. Joe smirked at her and sat on the seat next to them. In a matter of moments, the two girls ate up their breakfast and gathered their belongings to bound out the door. Just as Miley was about to holler Demi's name to make a move to their daily shopping, Nick walked into the kitchen.

"Hey guys," the curly headed boy nodded towards the group. He went over to get his coffee and didn't maintain any eye contact with Miley. She did the same and grabbed Demi's arm to rush her out the door. The two slipped out and left Nick and Joe alone.

"She is totally not ignoring you," Joe chuckled. He reached for a cup of coffee and leaned on the kitchen counter.

"You think?" Nick. His body was crumbling with frustration. It had been two weeks since he properly talked to Miley and even then she had just given him a slap on the face.

"What happened between you two anyways?" Joe asked innocently. He had a gist that something big happened, but he didn't know the exact details.

"She's a heart breaker," Nick mumbled.

"I thought you were the heart breaker."

"This is serious!" Nick whined. He dumped his coffee cup in the sink and rinsed it up. He went towards the sofa and shivered from the thought of Miley's cold hand hitting him across the face. "I kissed her in the middle of a fight and she slapped me."

"You were in the middle of a fight..." he reasoned.

"No, you don't get it. We were fine the whole day and then Demi comes and she was just picking excuses to be mad at me."

"So?" Joe asked. He didn't see where this conversation was exactly going to be honest. Nick groaned and slipped into his arm chair.

"She's scared of getting back together," he said as though it was the most logical thing that ever existed. Joe sank in the thought and thought carefully on how to respond.

"Does she know you're going on tour tomorrow morning?" he asked. Nick nodded. "Do you think she'll make up with you by then?"

"I don't know," he answered solemnly. He left an air of grief with Joe as he got up and walked into his room. Joe sat quietly at the couch and frowned at everything that was going on. He got up and paced around. There was nothing he could really do to fix this. He frowned at the thought and laid back on the couch. Maybe Demi could convince Miley. He slumbered into a small nap as he was left to these thoughts.

Demi and Miley slowly sneaked in as the came back from their daylong shopping trip. The apartment was completely quiet and they found Joe sleeping peacefully on the couch. Demi pressed her thin finger to her lips and tip toed to their room. Once they got in Miley walked towards the window to see the black sky staring down at her.

"I can't believe we were gone the whole day," she giggled to her raven haired sister. Demi sighed and grabbed her pajamas and went to the bathroom.

"I know," she called out over her shoulder. She ducked into the bathroom and ducked out a couple moments later, decked out in plaid pajamas.

"My turn," Miley giggled, hopping towards the bathroom to change into comfortable clothes. Her high healed boots had been killing her the whole day. Who knew furniture shopping was going to hurt?

"Miley, hurry up," Demi begged for her sister's attention. Miley came out giggling as she neared the bed. "What are you going to do about Nick," she mused out loud.

"What do you mean?" Miley sat down gently on the edge of the bed.

"I mean. You're clearly in love with him. And you spent a full three weeks avoiding your feelings. Now its time to just jump your fears. I gave you the whole day."

"I-," but Miley didn't know what to say. She had no excuse this time. Maybe, just maybe, she was ready to give her relationship with Nick another try. "You're right."

Miley silently got up and took a huge breath before opening her door.

"Demi I-," she turned around to look at Demi, but her sister stopped her speech.

"Don't worry about it," I can live on my own. "You have Nick," she said with understanding. Miley gave her a small smile and walked out of their room.

She walked across no man's land and finally stopped at Nick's door. Her delicate arm rose up and her knuckles crashed against his door.

"Come in," she heard his voice holler. She walked in to see his lying figure on his bed. All his suitcases were neatly packed up. He was getting ready for tomorrow. The day he would completely leave her. And she couldn't let him do that. She saw his eyes peek over his covers and she automatically melted. She walked towards his bed and climbed in with him, letting her back rest against his stomach, She felt his arms circle around her and scoot her in closer.

"What made you change your mind?" he whispered.

"I was too scared and now I'm ready," she quietly responded. There was a moment of awkward silence before Nick pressed his lips on her shoulder blade.

"I never ever meant to hurt you. I felt horrible from day one," he referred back to their past. Miley nodded.

"I'm over that. You've proven you really care about me," she said as she turned around to face him. Their noses were touching and she was able to look him in the eyes at the moment. "I just had a problem opening up my heart again. But I realized...for you, I would do anything," she let a tear slide down her cheek.

Nick grinned and leaned in to kiss her cheek. He bundled her up in his arms.

"I love you. I don't think I've ever said that," he murmured against her head. She giggled and tilted her head towards him.

"I love you too," she cooed, kissing him on the nose.

"I don't think I can go on tour and leave you here," he groaned, feeling his heart beat louder since she was so close to him.

"I'll come with you," she laughed.

"You will?"

"I don't think I can handle us being apart again," she confessed. He smiled in at her and closed in their distance. Their lips met and hovered over her.

"You're my beautiful concert angel," he whispered into her ear. She laughed and gave him a kiss in confusion. "You're the angel I'll be looking at when I start my concerts and when I end them," he explained. She smiled and kissed him again on his pink lips. He forced his body onto her and she breathed in his scent. She was going to be alright. Because she had him. And he was always going to be right here for her.

**A/N Thanks to LyricandMelody for the name of this story and always supporting me throughout this monster. Originally, I planned the story to be 17 chapters, but honestly I don't have the energy to do two more chapters and I think everything resolved itself really well in the last couple of chapters. So, this is the ending. Thank you guys!!!**


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